Fresh Fruit
by StrawberryBunnyLove
Summary: A year after the final battle, three new aliens start attacking the mew girls, specifically targeting Ichigo, Retasu, and Purin. Kisshu, Pai, and Taruto are back but can they keep them safe with the help of the other mews? KxI PxR TxP TxB. Set after A La Mode.
1. Flying Strawberry

**First story I'm uploading. I hope it's liked. I'm going to try to put lots of fluff in it. KisshuIchigo PaiRetasu TarutoPurin TasukuBerry. Set after ****_A La Mode_****.**

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Ichigo was walking home from work in her cafe uniform. Her street clothes had gotten soaked after Retasu accidentally spilled a pitcher of lemonade on her right before she was about to leave, so she didn't have anything else to wear. It had been a year since the aliens but not much had happened aside from the whole Saint Rose Crusaders ordeal. Ichigo clasped her hands behind her head, wondering what those aliens were up to nowadays. Before they had left, they promised they would visit but hadn't so far. She knew Purin was starting to wonder if they ever would, and so was she in all honesty. Things were getting a little...boring, now that they didn't need to be Tokyo Mew Mew anymore. At least they still had the cafe.

Ichigo stopped in her tracks when she felt as though she were being watched. She looked all around her but saw no one. And then Masha popped up.

"Alien! Alien!" He chirped.

"What?! Where?" Ichigo asked, still looking around. She scanned through the trees next to the sidewalk.

"Alien! Alien!" Masha continued.

She heard a huff and an unknown voice, "geeze, that thing is annoying."

"Masha!" She cried as a large stick was thrown at him, causing him to go flying and crash into the pavement.

"You are pretty cute, though," the strange voice said, "I can see why he liked you. Too bad you'll be the end of him."

"Who are you?!" Ichigo cried, feeling around her skirt pockets for her pendent. "What are you talking about?!" She couldn't find it. "No, no...I couldn't have left it at the cafe...oh, crap!" she mumbled to herself. She heard a mischievous snicker and then something, or someone, plowed into her and they went up, up, up. She screamed as the ground below got farther and farther away until the tree tops looked like they'd melded together and she almost couldn't see the park's large fountain anymore. Strong arms were clenched tight around her waist and she clung to the body that was holding her for dear life. Her cat ears and tail had popped out because of her sudden panic and fear and she squeezed her eyes shut.

"Suika," another voice filled with anger said, "put her down. Now." This voice was familiar, but Ichigo was too scared to think of why.

"Are you sure you want that?" This Suika guy said. "'Cause, you know, it's a pretty long drop." She heard the other person let out a sort of growl. Suika snickered and pretended to drop Ichigo, causing her to cling to him even tighter.

"I wonder what it's like for you," he said, "watching her hanging on me like this when you couldn't even get her to go near you! She's so easy, though!"

"I said put her back on the ground!" The other voice yelled.

Suika shrugged, "as you wish." He dropped her for real this time and she let out an ear piercing scream.

"ICHIGO!" The other voice screamed in panic.

After several seconds of rapid free falling, someone grabbed her around the waist and she immediately wrapped her arms around their neck and her legs around their waist as they tumbled through the air. She felt a ripple go through her body and then she was on the ground, still clinging to whomever had caught her. She was whimpering and shaking.

"Ssh," the voice tried to soothe her, "it's okay, we're on the ground now." A hand stroked one of her cat ears, "I've got you. You're safe, Koneko-chan."

Hearing that name, she knew who had her. She pulled back a little to look at the face of who held her, just to be completely positive. "K-Kisshu!" She stared up into golden eyes.

He chuckled and grinned down at her, "miss me?" He planted a kiss on her forehead before she could do anything to stop him.

"Why...what are you...?" She realized that she was sitting in his lap and jumped to her feet, blushing a little, "what are you doing here?!"

Kisshu raised an eyebrow at her, "you could say thank you. I mean, I did just save your life. Again."

"Who was that?!" She pointed towards the sky.

Kisshu sighed, "not even a hello?"

Ichigo rolled her eyes, "Hello, Kisshu."

He leaned back on his palms, "his name is Suika. He's here to kill you."

"Kill me?!" She exclaimed, "what did I ever do to him? I don't even know him!"

"No, but he knows me," Kisshu said, "and he hates me. Like, seriously hates me with a burning rage. So do his two friends who probably came with him."

"But why here?" Ichigo asked, "what does him hating you have to do with me?"

Kisshu stood up, "he's going after the one thing I love the most, Ichigo. You."

Ichigo blinked and a light blush came across her cheeks again. Was he seriously still on that? Even after a year, he was still claiming to love her. She remembered something.

"Where's Masha?" She asked, looking worried, "he got hit by that Suika guy and I haven't seen him since!"

"Don't worry, he's right here," Kisshu reached into his pants pocket and pulled out the tiny pink puff ball. "I remember him being bigger than this."

Ichigo grabbed him, "he can make himself smaller if he needs to. Oh, he's totally broken!"

"We better get to that base of yours," Kisshu said, "before Suika find us. Pai and Taruto should already be there." He grinned at her and held his arms open, "want a ride or do you wanna walk?"

"We're so walking," Ichigo said.

"But what about the humans?" Kisshu said, smirking, "or do you not care if they see you walking with some alien guy that used to attack this place."

Ichigo just stared at him for a moment before sighing, "can't you just teleport us?"

"Flying with you in my arms is more fun," he stated.

"Kish, please just cooperate for once!" Ichigo said, "I'm not having a good day."

"All right, fine," Kisshu said with a pout. He lifted a hand and snapped his fingers in her direction.

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**So, that's the first chapter. Please review and all that good stuff.**


	2. Kitty Craves Tuna

**Not an exciting chapter but it tells you more about Suika and his two friends and gets the story going kind of.  
For anyone who is wondering: Suika means watermelon, Kehki mean cake, and Mikan means orange.**

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Ichigo cracked open the door of the cafe, peeking in to see if anyone was there. She felt relieved when she saw the main lobby empty and walked in with Kisshu trailing behind her. They heard Keiichiro and Ryou chatting quietly in the kitchen.

"Wait here," Ichigo whispered to Kisshu. He sat cross legged in the air and leaned back with his hands behind his head. Ichigo walked to the kitchen and Ryou saw her first.

Keiichiro looked over his shoulder, noticing something had caught Ryou's attention, "Ichigo-san, I thought you had left."

"Well, I did, but..." She poked her forefingers together and looked concerned, "just don't freak out, okay?" Ryou and Keiichiro raised an eye at each other.

"If you broke something, I'm taking it out of your paycheck," Ryou said.

"I didn't break anything!" Ichigo defended, "Remember how the aliens said they'd visit before they left?" Ryou furrowed his brow and walked quickly passed her and into the main lobby. Ichigo and Keiichiro followed closely behind.

Ryou stopped when he saw Kisshu sitting in the air. "What are you doing back?"

"Saving Ichigo's cute butt," Kisshu said. Ichigo blushed a little at the comment and shot a glare at him.

"From what?" Ryou asked, hands on his hips.

"Some psycho that hates me," Kish said. "He's going after her because he found out that I love her."

"And you think you're going to protect her?" Ryou said, almost sarcastic.

Kisshu planted his feet on the ground, "I _am_ going to protect her. You don't know what this guy or his friends are capable of."

"And why should we trust you?" Ryou asked.

Kish narrowed his eyes, "I thought we ended the war on good terms?"

"We did," Ryou said, "but that doesn't mean I trust you with these girls."

"Ryou, I think we should at least give him a chance to explain," Keiichiro said.

"He did already save from this guy today," Ichigo said.

"You were attacked?" Ryou turned to look at her, "Why didn't you transform? The other Mews would have come for you."

"I kind of forgot my pendent here," Ichigo said, knowing he would be upset that she would forget something like that.

"You need to stop doing that!" Ryou scolded, "you're the leader of this team. You never know what could come after you."

"I know, okay?" Ichigo defended, "just give be a break. Things haven't exactly been blowing up since the Saint Rose Crusaders left."

"The Saint Rose who?" Kisshu asked, raising an eyebrow. He was ignored.

"You still don't know what could happen," Ryou said, "You could've gotten yourself killed!"

"I'm sorry, alright?!" Ichigo exclaimed, "I'm sorry I'm not some Mr. Perfect who never forgets anything, like to put a freaking _shirt_ on!"

"I was in my bedroom!" Ryou said, "You came in without knocking! Again!"

Kisshu watched in amusement as the two argued. Pai and Taruto appeared behind him and he turned around to face them. "Where were you two?" He asked, "you were supposed to be here before I was."

"We had a minor setback at the ship," Pai said.

"Minor setback?" Tart looked up at his older brother with irritation, "You lost one single paper of your research and said we couldn't leave until you found it! You could have just looked for it later, it's not like it was gonna just fly off on its own."

"It was important that it be found," Pai said, "it contained information on the Mew Aqua we brought home."

"I saw what it was," Tart said, "it was your study about that dolphin mew turning into a mermaid from over a year ago!"

"It is still of importance to our planet's full recovery," Pai said. Tart snorted and rolled his eyes.

"Kisshu," They heard Ryou call. Kish turned around again to look at him with a raised eyebrow. "I'm going to need to know everything I can about this guy."

"How about you rally the troops so I only have to explain this once?" Kish said.

"Fine," Ryou said, "but I better be able to trust the three of you."

It was a fairly short wait for the all the mews to show up. They knew it had to be important if Ryou was calling for a meeting out of nowhere. Berry and Retasu arrived first, smiling and chatting as they walked in.

Retasu's eyes landed on Pai first. "P-Pai-san!" She gave a small, quick bow at the waist, "I didn't know you were here!"

"Hello, Retasu," Pai said, only bowing his head because he was sitting at a table.

"Who the hell are you?" Kisshu asked, pointing at Berry.

"Um..." Berry was unsure of how to answer and looked to Ichigo for help as she took a seat next to her.

"Be nice!" Ichigo said to him, "this is Shirayuki Berry. She's a mew who joined us earlier this year to help fight the Saint Rose Crusaders. She's also second in command, so watch it."

"Yeah, I still don't know what you're talking about," Kisshu said.

"We'll explain all of that later," Ryou said, "it's a long story."

"Who is this guy?" Berry asked Ichigo as she took a seat next to her.

"Kish, one of the aliens that attacked Tokyo," Ichigo answered.

"Oh, I remember seeing that all over the news!" Berry said, wide eyed.

"I'm hurt you didn't tell your new friend about your alien lover," Kish said with a fake pout.

"Lover?" Berry questioned, surprised.

"Don't make it sound like something it's not!" Ichigo exclaimed, "he used to claim he was in love with me and practically stalked me."

Kisshu glared at Ichigo, "do you seriously still not believe me? Even after I _died_ protecting you?!"

"You tried to kill me several times!" Ichigo retorted.

"I was trying to save my people." Kisshu leaned closer to her face, "I thought it was the only way!"

"Then you shouldn't have fallen in love with me!"

"You seriously think I _chose_ to fall for my enemy?!"

"Well-"

"Enough!" Ryou shouted. "If you two can't get along, you can't sit next to each other."

"Fine by me..." Ichigo said, crossing her arms over her chest. Kisshu snorted and slumped back in the chair, also crossing his arms, and looked towards the wall.

Zakuro arrived, having just gotten out of a photo shoot. "When did they get back?" She asked Keiichiro, taking a seat next to him.

"Just today," he answered.

Minto and Purin arrived right after. "Thank you for the ride, Minto-oneechan, na no da!" Purin said, smiling up at Minto.

"It's no big deal," Minto said, "I pass your house on my way home from dance class anyway."

Purin's eyes landed on Taruto and he braced for impact as she lunged at him, yelling, "Taru-Taru!"

"Yeah, hi, Purin," he grumbled as he tried to loosen her arms from around his neck.

"When did you get here, na no da?" She asked, "why didn't you come see Purin?"

"I just got here today," Tart said, "and why would I go see you?"

"Because Tar-Tar is Purin's friend, na no da!" Purin exclaimed.

"Why are they back?" Minto asked Ryou with her fists on her hips.

"There's a new threat," Ryou said, "Ichigo is being targeted."

"What?!" Retasu exclaimed, putting her hands to mouth, "that's awful!"

"Kish is going to explain why and by who," Ryou said, gesturing for him to start.

"On my planet, our military separates us into groups of three or four," Kisshu started, "since Pai, Tart, and I are family, we got to stay together. But there was another group that wanted the Earth mission more than anyone else. Suika, the one that attacked Ichigo earlier, and his two buddies, Kehki and Mikan. Suika is pissed because he still believes Earth is rightfully ours and instead of retrieving it, we brought back the Mew Aqua. Kehki and Mikan agree, but they don't seem to care as much. They'll still fight, though, just to make our lives miserable. They're just pissed that we got chosen over them and now we're considered heroes on our planet."

"Do they have any weapons?" Ryou asked.

"Probably not, unless they broke into the armory," Kish said, "but they're still dangerous. Suika can read minds and emotions. That's he found out about Ichigo. Kehki can control fire and Mikan is like Tart; he can control plants."

"Seems like quite the trio," Keiichiro said, "what made your military choose you over them?"

"Pai's got more brains than the three of them combined," Kish said, "I ranked highest in fighting hand-to-hand, and Tart might be younger, but he has more control over himself than Mikan does. That kid can get insane." Kish leaned to his left and playfully punched Tart, who was sitting at the table next to him, in the shoulder with a smirk on his lips, "watch out 'cause they'll probably be after Purin soon, too!"

"Shut up..." Tart mumbled, brushing Purin's hair out of his face. She had forced him to let her sit on his lap.

"If we are to protect the Mews, we must know what we can about them," Pai said. "We need to know what strengths and weaknesses they may have. Suika will strike at whatever he thinks could make his target vulnerable."

Ryou put his elbows on the table and clasped his hands together in front of his mouth, "how can I be positive I can trust you?"

"Damn it, Ryou!" Kisshu said, narrowing his eyes at him, "Ichigo's life is in danger here!"

Ryou simply stared at him for a moment, "fine. We'll work with you, but you won't get my trust that easily."

"Just tell us what we need to know," Pai said.

"I'll give you copies of the girls' profiles," Ryou stood and headed for the basement.

"So, where do you three plan to stay?" Keiichiro asked.

"We have a base near the park from our last mission that we shall use," Pai said.

"A-are Suika and his friends the only reason you came back?" Retasu asked, looking down at her hands folded in her lap.

"Yes," Pai said. He noticed her head hung a bit lower and she seemed sad almost at that answer.

"Oh, come on, Pai!" Kish said, "We were due for a visit anyway. We promised a year ago that we would."

Ryou returned with a very thin stack of six papers that he handed to Pai, "these will tell you everything you need to know about them."

Pai studied the top paper for a moment, "Mew Ichigo craves tuna?"

"Ryou!" Ichigo whined.

Ryou chuckled quietly, "it was just a side note I made." He became serious, "Ichigo, as much as I hate to say this, I'm going to have Kisshu keep a close eye on you."

"What?! No way!" Ichigo protested, "It's still summer break for another tree weeks, I'll just say with Berry. I'm sure it won't be a problem. Right, Berry?"

"I don't mind," Berry said.

"Kisshu knows this guy better than any of the girls," Ryou said, "he'll know what to expect."

"Aoyama-kun can-"

"He isn't here, Ichigo," Ryou said, "and now that Deep Blue is dead, he can't become the Blue Knight. He can't protect you anymore." Kish felt an urge to smile knowing that he could look after Ichigo better than Aoyama could now but held it back and kept a straight face.

"But- I...argh!" She slid her crossed arms onto the table and let her head fall onto them.

"Aw, come one, Koneko-chan!" Kisshu said, grinning, "we'll have fun together." Ichigo peeked up and eyed him suspiciously, not trusting him to behave himself.

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**I'm going to try to start making the chapters longer. The next one isn't very long either, but it's relationship building between Kish and Ichigo. I hope you enjoyed this update, and please review!**


	3. Pizza

**Third chapter :) please enjoy**

**Truth Teller: Don't worry, there will be more fluffy couple stuff coming up in later chapters! Or are you asking me to add other couples besides those three?**

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The walls were a very pale pink and the floor was light colored hardwood with a black cat face shaped rug in the middle. Against the front wall, to the left of the door, was a gray dresser and a strawberry bean bag chair next to it in the corner. On the wall to the left, next to the window in the corner, was a gray desk and pink desk chair. On the opposite wall was a single person bed with pink sheets and a red blanket and pillow. Next to the bed was a small gray bedside table with a solar powered black kitten light, a strawberry alarm clock, and a pink book with a red pen. In various places above the desk were taped-up pictures of Ichigo and her Mew friends and one of her and Aoyama.

Kisshu smirked at the room, "cute."

"Just don't go through any drawers, and don't you dare think about reading my journal," Ichigo said as she sat down on the edge of the bed.

Kisshu disappeared for a second and reappeared a foot above her bed, allowing himself to fall onto it, "mm, this is comfy, Koneko-chan! Can I sleep here with you?"

"Of course not!" Ichigo exclaimed, jumping up and spinning to face him. "You can't be in my room whenever you want. My parents can't know you're here."

Kisshu gave her a questioning look and propped himself up on his elbows, "why not?"

"What do you mean '_why no_t'?" Ichigo said, "they don't know I'm a Mew Mew and they can't ever find out."

"So no one outside of the Mew Project knows who any of you really are?" Kisshu asked.

Ichigo shook her head, "only Aoyama-kun and Berry's boyfriend, Tasuku."

"Why?" Kisshu asked.

"It could put them in danger." Ichigo said as if he should have already known that, "and my parents would never let me fight if they found out."

Kisshu thought about it for a moment, "if you hated fighting so much, why didn't you just quit? Hand the job over to someone else."

Ichigo sat on her desk chair, "I had to. Mew Mews are the only ones who can protect Earth."

Kisshu laid back down with his hands behind his head, "that sucks. At least I chose to become a soldier."

"You're a soldier?" Ichigo asked, "I mean, I know there was the whole military thing but...I didn't think you were soldiers."

"Yeah, so's Pai and Taruto," Kisshu said. "What'd you think we were?"

"I don't know," Ichigo said, "I hadn't thought about it."

Kisshu started to look a little sad, "you don't think about me much, do you?"

Ichigo was about to say something when there was a knock at her door. "Ichigo, honey!" It was her mother.

"Oh no!" Ichigo jumped up and was about to try to throw Kisshu under the bed, but he was already gone.

The door opened and her mother poked her head in, "your father and I are going out to dinner. Would you like to come with us?"

"Oh, um, no thanks, not tonight," Ichigo said, "I'm kind of tired." She faked a yawn and stretched.

"Oh, all right, see you later then." Her mom smiled and closed the door.

"You look just like your mom, huh?" Ichigo jumped and shot a glare at Kisshu, who was now standing right behind her, for scaring her.

"What?!" They heard her father yell, "what do you mean she doesn't want to go?! It's sushi night at the buffet! She loves sushi!"

"Calm down, dear," Her mother said, "think of it as a date!" They went quite for a moment before calling up a goodbye to Ichigo and leaving.

Kisshu laughed, "your dad is funny!"

"Unless you're my boyfriend," Ichigo said, "then he might try to beat your ass."

"I'll be the same way if our daughter turns out as cute as you," Kisshu said, winking at her.

"Ew..." Ichigo stuck her tongue out. She headed for the door and Kisshu followed.

"What? You don't wanna make babies with me?" He laughed.

"Oh, my God, Kisshu! Please stop talking!" Ichigo headed down the stairs and into the kitchen. He laughed as her cheeks turned red.

"What do you want for dinner?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

"Ehh..." Kisshu thought about it, but he didn't really know what there was to eat on Earth. "Surprise me," he shrugged. Ichigo picked up the phone and ordered a pizza.

Ichigo couldn't wait for the pizza to arrive. Kisshu was flying all over her house, looking and poking at everything, and constantly making perverted remarks towards her. She just couldn't get him to sit still. And then the doorbell rang.

"I wanna get it!" Kisshu shouted and flew towards the front door.

"Kisshu, wait, you can't-!" But he had already planted his feet on the ground and opened the door.

"Um...h-here's your pizza," she heard the delivery boy say.

"Thanks!" Kisshu said. He grabbed the box and headed for the kitchen.

"You have to pay for it, Kish!" Ichigo marched to the door and pulled out her Hello Kitty wallet from her shorts pocket, handing the boy the required amount and a small tip.

"Thanks, Momomiya-san," he said.

Her head shot up and her eyes widened. "Masaki-san!" A boy from her old school. And not just any boy, but a good friend of Masaya's.

"Who is that guy?" He asked innocently, "are you doing some kind of cosplay thing?"

Ichigo laughed nervously, "yeah, it's um, something Shirogane might try for the cafe."

"Weird," Masaki said, "well, I hope it goes well. I'll see you around!" He waved as he walked back down to the sidewalk. Ichigo shut the door and sighed in frustration. She went to the kitchen to find Kisshu sitting at the table, sniffing the pizza.

"What's it made out of?" He asked.

"Food," Ichigo growled, "do you know what you've done?"

Kisshu looked up at her with a raised eyebrow, "what'd I do?"

"That was a friend of Aoyama-kun's!" Ichigo exclaimed, "and now he's probably going to tell him that I have some weird boy at my house and that we're alone!" She slumped into the chair across from Kisshu.

"I didn't know, okay?" Kisshu said, "and besides, what's the worst that's gonna happen when he finds out I'm here?"

"He could think I'm cheating on him!" Ichigo said.

"Want to?" Kisshu wiggled his eyebrows at her and gave her a suggestive look.

"Knock it off," Ichigo scowled. "I'm going to grab some plates." She got up and got two plates from the cupboard.

"So, where is your little boy-toy, anyway?" Kisshu asked, "I heard Ryou say he wasn't here."

"Don't call him that," Ichigo said, shooting him an annoyed look. She sat down and handed Kish a plate. "He's in Italy for his environmental studies." She sighed sadly, pouting, "one of the most romantic countries on Earth and he left without me."

"Well that's crappy of him," Kisshu said. "you know, I could take you anywhere you'd want to go. Just name it and we'll be there."

"You could really do that?" Ichigo asked and Kish nodded with a sly smile. Images of Paris, London, Spain, New York, and Hawaii flashed through her mind. She had been to England once before, but she got called back to the Mews before she could go to London with Masaya. She saw herself posing with the Eiffel Tower in the background, eating pasta in a cute little restaurant by a lake as she talked and laughed with Kish, walking down Times Square hand-in-hand with- she shook her head violently. She didn't want to image herself holding hands with Kisshu or having dinner dates with him.

"But I wouldn't want to go with _you_," Ichigo said, "I'd want to be there with Aoyama-kun." Kish snorted and rolled his eyes as he took a bite of pizza.

Kisshu was standing before Ichigo's dresser, looking at all the little things she had on it as he waited for her to come back upstairs. A small mirror with an ornate metal frame. A children's pink Hello Kitty hairbrush. Many different things of makeup in varying shades of pink and red and a few in green or black. Green elastic hair ties that had plastic strawberry bobbles, pink ones with black kitten bobbles, pink ribbons, red ribbons, and hair clips of black kittens, strawberries, and hearts. She had a tiny pink dish containing a few earrings. He fingered through them, finding more strawberries and kittens mixed with various dessert shaped ones and a few hearts and roses. He heard the door handle start to turn.

Ichigo walked in and closed the door behind her, leaning on it, "now that my parents will leave me alone for the night..." She looked at him, "you better not be going through any drawers."

He stuck his tongue out at her and then took a step to the his right, spun on his heel, and plopped himself onto the strawberry beanbag chair.

Ichigo pushed off the door and walk to her bed to sit on the edge. "So..." and awkward silence fell over them.

"I'm not leaving," Kish said after a minute or two.

"Well, you can't sleep here," Ichigo said, "there's only one bed and we're not sharing. Besides, Pai said you had that base."

"Yeah, but it's not close enough for me to get here fast if you get attacked again," he said.

"I can take care of myself," Ichigo said, "I have my pendent right under my pillow and if I could fight you off, I can fight him off."

"I'm supposed to-"

"Just go, Kish," Ichigo said firmly, "we could both use the rest."

"Fine," he said, standing, "if you need me, all you have to do is call for me." Ichigo looked out the window for a moment and then back to where he was, about to say goodnight, but he was already gone.

* * *

Ichigo was sound asleep in her bed, cuddled up under her comforter. The strawberry alarm clock read 02:37AM in bright red LED lighting. Her window was wide open and a gentle breeze blew in, ruffling the red curtains. A dark figure appeared next to the bed, smirking, with his arms crossed over his chest. He held his hands out in front of him and a *kusari-fundo appeared in them. He lifted the weapon, one hand higher than the other, preparing to strike. Faster than he could realize, Ichigo's eyes snapped open and her hand shot under her pillow.

*Kusari-fundo is a Japanese weapon. It is a long chain with a weight at both ends.*

"MEW MEW STRAWBERRY! METAMORPHO-SIS!" A pink light surrounded her, illuminating the room, and when it was gone, she threw off her blanket and lunged at the intruder, knocking him to the floor. Knowing he would follow, she jumped to the window and then her tree, leading him away from her family. She landed firmly on her feet on the ground and looked over her shoulder to see him high in the air above her, chain gripped in fists. She got a good look at him in the moonlight. His hair was about the length of Kish's but tied back in a low ponytail at the nape of his neck and was a lighter green streaked with black. His eyes were red and he wore an open black vest with knee-length black pants and slouchy black boots. Two green ribbons flowed from the back of his pants and he had black wraps around his wrists. He held his chain high with one hand and started to spin it rapidly. He threw it and Ichigo leaped forward, somersaulting to a stop on her hands and feet, facing him.

"Strawberry Bell!" She reached a hand out to grab her weapon that as it appeared in front of her. She stood straight and aimed it at him as he flew down to retrieve his chain. "RIBBON...STRAWBERRY CHECK!" He snatched up his weapon and dodged her attack. Ichigo turned and ran, heading for the park where she knew they would be more secluded and away from townhouses. Her attacker followed, although he did try to strike her every now and then but she always managed to jump away just in time. When she got the park, she heard him snicker.

"This is where I first saw you," her attacker was Suika, as she had already guessed. A rush of water blasted him to the ground.

Ichigo looked to the entrance of the park, grinning. The other Mews, aside from Purin, had arrived and ran to her side.

"Purin couldn't make it," Minto said, "with her siblings to take care of and all."

Ichigo gave a single nod, "I understand."

Suika got back up and two other figures appeared behind him. One was taller with somewhat long and loose sandy blond hair and dark brown eyes. He was wearing a tight-fitting dark brown tank top, dark brown pants with a black belt, and mid-calf high black boots. Black ribbons flowed from the back of pants and he had white wraps on his wrists. The other one was a little shorter than Suik. He had messy orange hair in two high and two low pigtails with pale orange eyes. He was wearing a loose yellow v-neck tank top with baggy tan colored pants and no shoes. Orange ribbons flowed from the back of his pants and he had orange wraps on his wrists. The blond held his hands up with his palms facing each other and a ball of fire appeared. He shot upwards, making the ball grow larger and threw it down at the girls.

"RIBBON...ZAKURO PURE!" Zakuro's whip of light extinguished the flame.

The orange haired one cackled and raised his palms to the sky, making roots shoot up from the ground. The Mews jumped away in different directions, leaving Ichigo wide open. Suika appeared next to her and whipped his chain around her, capturing her in a vice-like grip. He shot upwards and disappeared.

"Ichigo!" Berry exclaimed. The other two aliens disappeared soon after and the roots slithered back into the ground.

* * *

**I feel like not much happened in this chapter until the very end. Oh well, at least Kish and Ichigo got to know each other more. The next chapter is more exciting. Please review!**


	4. Scary Pie

**I put some mild PaiRetasu into this one :) enjoy and thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far! You all deserve cookies.**

* * *

Kisshu was sitting on his bed, cross legged, looking over the profiles Ryou had given them. It was boring, but if he didn't do it then Pai would pester him until he did. So far, he had found Ichigo's the most interesting. He found out that she and Berry could do a special combined attack and read the whole story about the Saint Rose Crusaders. He looked up when his door slid open and saw Pai standing there.

"Care to knock?" Kish said, slightly annoyed.

"We need to go over a plan of action against Suika and his friends," Pai said.

Kish sighed and leaned back against the wall, "Yeah, I know. I just wish Ichigo would let me protect her more. I should be with her right now! Not here, studying crap I already know. Well, most of it anyway." He poked the Saint Rose Crusaders report with his foot.

"She is a strong girl," Pai said, "and highly independent."

"She might be strong, but she's still my Koneko-chan," Kisshu said, "I'm still going to protect her." Pai remained silent and Kish studied his face.

"Why did you lie to Retasu?" He asked.

"Excuse me?" Pai said.

"You told her the only reason we were back was because of Suika," Kish said, "but you knew Tart and I were planning a visit soon anyway."

"It is my only reason for being here," Pai said.

"Oh, please," Kisshu said giving him a look that clearly meant he knew better, "You might not show it but I can see it in your eyes every time you look at her."

"Look at who?" Pai said, sounding like he was only humoring Kish.

"Pai, you have to be honest about this," Kish said, sounding very serious.

"I don't know what you speak of," Pai said. His expression remained emotionless but he looked away.

"If you can't admit it, Retasu's gonna start getting attacked and no one is gonna know why," Kish said.

"Retasu-san will not be attacked," Pai said, looking back at him with the slightest hint of protectiveness in his voice.

They stared at each other for a moment before Tart ran in yelling, "Guys, guys, guys!" They both looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Their younger brother was a little breathless and looked panicked. "Mew Ichigo was taken by Suika!

"What?!" Kisshu jumped into the air, "When?!"

"Just now," Tart huffed, "Ryou contacted us through the computer and said we need to get to some building called Twinkle Toes Studio _pronto_." Kisshu immediately disappeared.

Ichigo let out a squeak as she was tossed to the ground and landed on her back, still wrapped in the chain. Suika, Kehki, and Mikan stood on the ground a few feet behind her. Ichigo looked around quickly at her surroundings. It was dark in the room. It would have been too dark if the moonlight hadn't been shining in and bouncing off of the wall-length mirrors that covered the wall to her right and they had a metal bar running the same length. On the wall above her head there were several large windows and on the wall below her was a broken door. Nothing but a pink couch was along the wall to her left. Dust had settled all over the room, dead leaves were scattered around that had blown in through the open windows, and the mirrors were covered in a thin layer of dirt. Ichigo recognized it as the old abandoned dance studio downtown.

Suika moved quickly as he walked up to her and knelt down close to her head. He smirked down at her, "I can't believe Kisshu actually fell for a human." He let out a loud laugh, "he's so weak! And refusing to let go...well, that just makes it so much sweeter. Not to mention you'll die and he can spend the rest of his short life believing he'd never have a chance with you!"

"_What does that even mean_?" Ichigo wondered to herself as she stared up at him, frozen with fear at what he might do. She was wrapped up in a chain and couldn't move her arms, get to her feet, or call for her weapon. At least Ryou would be able to track her and send the Mews to help her. She prayed that they'd get there soon. Getting an idea, she arched her body, sliding her legs back, and then swung them forward off the ground, ramming her knees into Suika's back.

He let out a shout and fell forward. "You'll pay for that!" The orange haired boy said and faced a palm to the leaves on the ground. They started to swirl around the room.

"Cool it, Mikan!" Suika barked, getting back on his feet, "I'm not done with her yet." The leaves settled as Mikan lowered his hands.

Suika picked her up by the ends of the chain and started walking towards the mirror covered wall. _Slam_! Glass shattered all around them, the moonlight glinting off of the broken shards. Glass tangled in her hair and scraped up her backside. Suika jerked her closer to himself and tiny pieces of glittering glass fell from her shoulders and the folds of her skirt. His smiled looked twisted and malicious.

"Wishing for your little friends won't help anything," he hissed, "even if they can track where you are. I'll kill you before they get here."

"No, you won't!" Something hard hit Suika across the back of his head and he stumbled to the left, dropping Ichigo who slumped to the floor.

"Koneko-chan," Kisshu knelt down and hurriedly unwrapped the chain from around her, "I told you I should've stayed at your house."

Ichigo let out a sharp breath, "my back..." Kish pulled her closer to himself, making her lean on his chest, so he could see what she meant. Multiple tiny shards of glass were jutting out from her skin. Nothing fatal, but definitely painful.

He stood and spun, making his sais appear in his hands, just as Pai and Tart appeared at his sides. Suika smiled. "An even match, I see." He said. His smile faded to a glare when he saw Ichigo slowly and wearily get to her feet, holding her shoulder.

Kish looked over his shoulder at her, "Ichigo, don't get into this fight. We've got it covered. Just rest and...I don't know, stop bleeding."

Ichigo let out a snort of laughter, "as if I could control that," she stood as straight as she could, "but I will fight. I have to."

Kisshu was going to argue that no, she didn't, but remembered how stubborn she could be and knew they didn't have time for it. He gritted his teeth and flew at Suika who dove to the ground by Ichigo's feet and grabbed his chain. He used it like a whip and slung it at Kish. It hit his knee but he pushed passed the pain and kept fighting. Mikan let out a strangled yell as he lunged at Tart, knocking him to the ground. They wrestled, throwing punches, kicking, and pulling hair. Pai and Kehki stood before each other, Pai with his fans in clenched in his hands and Kehki with a bright ball of fire between his own. As Pai raised one fan to ready a strike, a blue streak crashed through one of the large windows and right into Kehki, knocking him backwards into the wall. Minto bounced back, her wings beating fast as she hovered in the air. Moments later, the other three Mews barreled through the door.

Suika was near the ceiling when he looked down at Pai and saw him looking right at Retasu. "Halt!" He shouted and everyone stopped to look at him. Suika drifted down to stand in front of Pai who glared back at him. He started snickering, quietly at first, and it grew until he was howling and holding his stomach in laughter. Pai held his glare, unamused and uninterested in Suika's behavior. Everyone else, however, was watching with wonder at what could be causing it.

"Did you read something from him?" Kehki asked.

"Oh, my God, Pai!" Suika blurted out, subsiding his laughter to mild chuckling, "Kish, Tart, sure, I almost expect it from them. But _you_?! This is too good to be true!"

"I do not know what you speak of," Pai said monotonously.

"You can't lie to me," Suika said, only smirking now, "it's all over your mind that you l-" he was cut off by Pai grabbing him by the throat and lifting him off the ground. His legs kicked and he clawed at Pai's hand but it did nothing to help him.

Pai brought him close so that his lips were right next to Suika's ear, "I will rip out your throat if you speak one word about her," he whispered so quietly that not even Berry could hear what was said. He threw Suika back as he released his grip on him.

Suika's eyes darted from each Mew and alien as he gingerly held his throat. He cursed under his breath, "We're outnumbered this time. Let's hit it." He disappeared along with Kehki and Mikan.

"What was that all about?" Minto asked.

"Nothing," Pai stated and also disappeared.

* * *

Ichigo was on her stomach on her bed with her arms crossed over her pillow in front of her and her Strawberry Shortcake pajama t-shirt pulled up to the nape of her neck. Retasu sat on the edge of the bed, gingerly picking out the tiny shards of glass from her upper back and dabbing the bleeding spots with a medical disinfectant. The other Mews had gone home and Ryou was waiting outside Ichigo's bedroom door with Kish, who was now dressed in a black t-shirt, baggy dark colored jeans, and a black beanie cap to hide his ears in case one of her parents woke up and came out of their bedroom.

"All done, I think," Retasu said, examining Ichigo's upper back, which was now riddled with circular pink band-aids. Ichigo slowly sat up and sat with her butt between her feet, gingerly pulling her shirt back down.

Retasu stood and went to the door, slowly opening it so it didn't make any noise, "you can come in now." The two boys walked in and she shut the door behind them.

"I told Kisshu to keep an eye on you for a reason," Ryou said.

"Oh, don't even start," Ichigo grumbled, "how the heck am I supposed to hide a sleeping alien in my room?"

"Figure it out," Ryou said.

"She has a point," Retasu said, crossing the room to sit on the edge of the bed again, "her parents would never let her have a boy spend the night."

"I'll sleep in the corner on the strawberry thing," Kish said, "that way if a human comes in at night, I'll be hidden enough that they won't see me and I'll have time to leave."

"I don't want to share a room with Kisshu," Ichigo protested, "he's enough of a pervert as is."

Kish winked at her, "only for you, Koneko-chan." Ichigo shot him a half-assed glare. She was too tired to deal with his antics and owed him a thank you for saving her yet again, anyway.

"Just do it, Ichigo," Ryou said, "it's for your own good." He turned and headed for the door before she could continue to argue, silently letting himself out.

Retasu let out a shallow sigh and stood up, "I best be getting home as well."

"Retasu, that's too far to walk," Ichigo said, "just spend the night."

"I can't," Retasu said, "my parents hopefully still think I'm asleep in bed."

"I'll take you," Kish said, "we'll just teleport and no one will know you ever left."

"A-are you sure?" Retasu asked, "I don't want to be a burden."

"It's fine," Kish said, shrugging, "it'll only take a minute."

"Alright," Retasu said and Kish raised a hand, snapping his fingers in her direction. With a ripple, they were gone.

Ichigo sat alone on her bed. In the back of her mind, she acknowledged that a few spots on her back itched but ignored it. It had been a crazy night and all she wanted was sleep. She looked over at her alarm clock. 05:13AM. Nearly three hours they had been out dealing with those creeps.

Kish reappeared in front of her window and she looked over at him. "See? Only a minute." He said with a smile.

"I really don't need you to stay," Ichigo said.

Kisshu narrowed his eyes, "look, I understand that you can take care of yourself. Believe me, I've been on the bad end of it. But I have to...I need you to..." he let out a frustrated sigh, "damn it, Ichigo, would you just let me take care of you for once? Especially after what just happened."

She blinked, a little surprised at his sudden frustration and his request. "Fine. Stay if you really feel the need to." She slid off of her bed and got down on her hands and knees, reaching under the bed. She pulled out a fuzzy black blanket and handed it to him. "It might be a little warm for a summer night, but it's the only spare blanket I have."

"Thank you," Kish said, still sounding irritated, and took the blanket from her. He plopped himself onto the beanbag, yanking off the beanie, and covered himself with the blanket.

Ichigo watched him for a moment, knowing it would be an uncomfortable sleep for him there. Not knowing what else to do, she flipped off the light and got in bed herself.

"Goodnight, Koneko-chan," she head him say, sounding more relaxed now.

"Goodnight," Ichigo said.

* * *

Ichigo let out a tiny groan as she groggily started to wake up. She blinked her eyes open slightly, hazily seeing something gold colored right in front of her. Remembering that she now had a temporary roommate, her eyes fluttered open to see Kish's face mere inches from hers. She jerked herself backwards, startled and propped herself up on one elbow.

"What are you doing?" She demanded.

"Watching you sleep," he answered from where he was crouched on the floor in front of the bed.

"Why?" She asked, sounding utterly confused.

"'Cause I woke up like fifteen minutes ago when your little strawberry thingy started beeping," Kish said, pointing to the item on her bedside table.

Ichigo looked at it and blinked. Her alarm clock. She had slept through it _again_. "Oh, crap!" She exclaimed, throwing her covers off and scrambling out of bed. "I'm so gonna be late! This is the third time this week. Why didn't you wake me up?! It's called an _alarm_ clock for a reason!"

Kish watched with amusement as she raced around the room, digging through her dresser drawers and hurriedly putting on makeup and putting her hair into pigtails. She tossed her choice of clothes onto her bed -denim shorts that had a black cat face patch on the left leg and a black t-shirt that had a cute cupcake graphic on the front- and was about to peel off her pajama shirt when she stopped and looked at Kish, who was now watching her with a smirk and raised eyebrows.

"Get out!" She exclaimed. He pouted but did as he was told and teleported himself to her tree outside. She yanked her curtains closed and finished getting ready. Ichigo raced downstairs and quickly shoved her feet into a pair of black ankle-high boots and bolted out the door without even thinking about breakfast. She mildly acknowledged that Kish was following in flight through the trees.

Ryou had decided that the aliens needed to blend in more and instructed them that in order to do so, they would be working at the cafe with the girls. He assigned each boy to a task and asked Retasu, Purin, and Ichigo to help them out with it. He also gave them each a uniform. They were white button up shirts with black vests, black slacks, and a bow tie. Kisshu's bow tie was red, Pai's was purple, and Tart's was orange. Their ears were still pointed but at least human sized. The Mew crew discovered that for a few hours the aliens could alter their bodies just slightly by snapping their fingers over whichever part they wanted changed.

"Kisshu, you'll be with me," Ichigo said when they all got changed into their uniforms and were out in the main lobby, "taking orders for customers."

"Pai-san will be helping me greet and seat people," Retasu said with a cheery smile.

"And Tar-Tar will help Purin clean the kitchen, na no da!" Purin exclaimed excitedly. They all got to work.

Retasu stood in front of the register counter, waiting for new customers. When one walked in, she instructed Pai on what to say and how to act.

"Welcome to Cafe Mew Mew," he towered over the two teen girls that had walked in, "just two?"

"Y-yes..." One said meekly.

"This way." Pai said and turned on his heel. The two girls glanced at each nervously other before following him. He showed them to a two person seat as Ichigo walked over with Kisshu on her tail. Pai returned to Retasu and asked, "was that satisfactory?"

"Um..." Retasu thought of what to say, "you were a bit on the, uh, scary side. Try being a bit happier next time. Watch me with the next people who come in." Pai gave quick nod and waited attentively for the next customers.

A loud crash was heard from the kitchen and white powder blew out as Purin yelled, "Tar-Tar that's not soap, that's flour, na no da!"

A boy at a table that Ichigo was taking orders from snickered mischievously as she was turned, taking his friend's order. He made a reach for her butt but a pale hand caught his wrist before he could touch her. He looked up into angry golden eyes.

"Hands off," Kisshu growled.

Ichigo looked over her shoulder, "what's going on?"

"He tried to grab your ass," Kisshu sneered at the boy, who looked rather frightened.

Ichigo blushed a little. "Kish, let him go. Sir, if you harass waitresses, you'll be asked to leave."

The boy yanked his hand away, "y-yeah, sorry."

The bell on the door jingled as yet another customer walked in. It was a boy with a girl clinging to his arm.

"Welcome to Cafe Mew Mew," Retasu said cheerfully, "only two?"

"Yeah," the boy said, eyeing Retasu in a way that Pai did not like at all. The girl also seemed to notice and glared at her.

"Take us to a table now, please," she demanded.

Retasu's smile faded, wondering what could make the girl act so rude, "O-of course, right this way. Pai-san, would you please grab some menus?" Pai nodded and walked behind the counter the get them. "Thank you," Retasu said before leading the couple a small table for two. Pai was right behind her with the menus in hand. He set them down on the table and walked back to the counter.

Kisshu walked up with a silver tray and a white towel on his arm, Ichigo observing from behind him, "Hi! My name is Kish and I'll be your host today." Retasu turned to walk away and he noticed the boy watching her backside. He also noticed Pai mildly glaring at the boy from his place by the counter. He couldn't help quietly laughing to himself, wondering when his brother would finally just break down and admit his feelings for the girl.

The rest of the day seemed to go without a hitch, except for Pai unintentionally scaring a few more customers. It took him a while to get used to greeting people with a smile and friendly tone, but he managed to at least a little. Kish started taking on tables by himself after just a little practice, and Purin and Tart got the kitchen cleaned up pretty well. Zakuro hadn't been there that day for a photo shoot, Minto had left early for ballet practice, and Tart and Purin had just left to pick up Heicha from daycare.

Ichigo yawned and stretched her arms out over the table she and Kish were sitting at with Retasu, Pai, Berry, and Tasuku. "Hey, Kish, want to watch a movie when we get to my house? I'll make some popcorn."

"Sure," Kish agreed cheerfully, "I've never seen a movie before. Or had popcorn."

"You'll like it," Ichigo said, "movie nights are one of my favorite things."

Kisshu grinned. Ichigo was actually sharing one of her favorite things with him. Not another mew, not Aoyama, but _him_.

"That does sound fun," Berry said, "what movie are you gonna watch?"

"I don't know yet," Ichigo said, "we'll probably pick when we get home."

"Berry and I are gonna go to her room and make out," Tasuku announced with a cheeky smile.

"Tasuku!" Berry whined, her face reddening, "you can't just say stuff like that in front of people!" Kisshu laughed at the two, silently wishing he could say the same about himself and Ichigo.

"I think I might take a trip to the library," Retasu said, "I'd like to find a new book to read."

Pai felt a tinge of worry that she might be attacked. He had a soft spot for the green haired girl, although he'd never admit it, and didn't want to take any chances after their last encounter with Suika. "I would like to see this library, if you would not mind the company."

"Oh, sure," Retasu smiled up at him, "I think you'd really enjoy it, there are lots of interesting books to look through."

"Well, now that everyone's plans are settled, I say we head home," Kisshu said, nudging Ichigo gently in the ribs.

Pai and Retasu walked to the library from the cafe, after changing into street clothes. They chatted a bit the whole way and she answered the best that she could to any of Pai's questions about human life and the strange things they have, like hot dog carts on the sides of streets. When they got there, it was quiet as usual and not many people were around.

Pai was looking at a shelf containing books about nature and Retasu was on the other side, where the romance novels were. He got a bit curious when he heard her grunt softly a few times and walked around to find on her tiptoes, trying to reach a book on the top shelf. He walked up behind her and grabbed it for her.

"Oh, t-thank you, Pai-san," she said.

"A romance about mermaids?" He asked. He looked over the cover and then handed it to her.

Retasu blushed a little, clutching the book to her chest, "yes, well, you see...ever since I became one when I was near the Mew Aqua, I've had a bit of a fascination with them."

Pai gave her a small smile, "that's understandable." She beamed up at him and he couldn't help enjoying seeing her smiling at him.

She looked down at the book he was holding in one hand, "are you ready to check out?"

"Oh," he held up the book, "I do not have a...what do you call them?"

"A library card?" Retasu said. Pai nodded and she took the book from him, "that's fine, I'll get it!" She said happily and walked up the nearby counter before he could protest.

"Thank you," he said once they were outside.

"Your welcome," She smiled up at him, "just remember we have to return it in five days."

"Hey, Retasu-san!" A boy with short black hair and crystal blue eyes ran up to them, "I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm just fine, Takao-san," Retasu said, "how are you?"

"Good," he answered, "so, I was wondering when you were gonna come help out our coastal cleanup group again."

"I will soon, hopefully," Retasu said, "things have just been a little hectic lately."

"I understand," Takao said. He glanced up at Pai, "who's your friend?"

"Pai-san, this is Takao Yokomori," she introduced them, "he's the captain of a coastal cleanup group I work with sometimes. Takao-san, this is Pai, um..." she blinked, realizing that she didn't actually know Pai's last name.

"Ikisitashi," Pai said.

"He just moved here and is working at Cafe Mew Mew with me," Retasu said with a bright smile.

"Ah, I see," Takao said, "well, you'll both have to come help out the group sometime soon. See you around!" He waved as he walked off and the both waved back.

Retasu laughed a bit nervously, "I never thought about what your last name might be."

"What is a coastal cleanup group?" Pai asked.

"Oh, we go to the beach and pick up trash that people leave behind and whatever else could pollute the water. My group is named Ocean Saviors," Retasu explained, "and we almost always go swimming afterwards, so we always go in our swimsuits. Is it something you'd like to try?"

"Maybe," Pai said. He did like the thought of helping to clean the Earth, especially since the Mew Aqua that healed his own planet was from there.

* * *

**I can't wait to get Pai and Retasu's relationship passed secret admiration because I have some cute ideas for them coming up. But I am having trouble thinking of some kid-appropriate relationship stuff for Purin and Tart, so if anyone would be willing to help with ideas, that would be great! And please review :)  
**


	5. Pudding in the Sky

**Thank you to the people who sent ideas for Purin and Tart :) I already used one in an upcoming chapter -the seventh- and I'm going to work in another one at some point. Enjoy the fifth chapter! **

* * *

Ichigo was at her front door with Kisshu. "See you in your room," he said as he was about to teleport.

Ichigo grabbed his wrist and raised an eyebrow at him, "we're going to watch a movie, remember? My parents have to know you're here. The TV is in the living room."

"But I thought they couldn't know about me?" Kisshu asked.

"Not the whole alien thing," Ichigo said, "but you look human enough. It'll be fine."

"Oh, okay," Kisshu was a bit nervous at meeting her parents. He wasn't sure why, though. It wasn't like they were dating. Yet.

Ichigo unlocked the door and stepped in. "Mom? Dad? I brought a friend home. We're going to watch a movie in the living room."

"All right dear, I'm making cookies and your father is staying late at the office!" Sakura called from the kitchen.

"Okay!" Ichigo said. She led Kisshu to the living room and told him to sit down on the couch. She pulled out a box from next to the TV that had a least a dozen movies in it.

"Something funny, action packed, or a romance?" Ichigo asked. She prayed he didn't pick something scary.

"Umm..." Kisshu sifted through them, looking at all the covers. "This one!" He grinned as he held up his choice.

"A-are you sure...?" She asked. He had picked The Grudge.

"Yes." Kisshu said, starting to read the synopsis on the back.

Ichigo sighed, "okay..." She mentally kicked herself for letting him pick. "I'll make the popcorn first."

"Okay," Kisshu said, still reading. Ichigo got up went to the kitchen.

"So, how is Berry?" Sakura asked.

"Um, fine? Why?" Ichigo questioned.

"That's who's here isn't it?" Sakura said, "she's usually the friend you bring over these day. Or is it Retasu and Minto this time?"

"No, his name's Kisshu," Ichigo said. She put the bag of popcorn in the microwave.

Sakura looked at her daughter, "A boy?" She grinned, "bored with Aoyama now, are you?"

Ichigo blushed, "No, of course not! He's just a friend. He's new here, so I thought it'd make it easier if he had someone to show him around and stuff."

"Well, that's nice of you," Sakura said, "just don't do anything I wouldn't do." She gave her a wink.

Ichigo didn't respond as she took the bag out of the beeping microwave and dumped it into a bowl. She added some butter and salt and headed back to the living room to put the movie in. She checked her phone.

"Waiting for something?" Kish asked.

"Aoyama-kun hasn't called or even sent a text in several days," Ichigo said with a sad face. He fell silent as the movie started.

Kisshu's eyes were wide with a small amused smirk on his lips. He liked horror movies, he discovered, although he didn't find this one particularly scary. But he also discovered that Ichigo did not like them, as she was curled up in a tight ball next to him, clinging to his shirt as she hid her face in his shoulder. He had wrapped an arm around her but she either didn't notice or didn't care. They had finished all the popcorn well before it was over and had gotten glasses of water at some point in the middle.

"That was a good movie, Koneko-chan!" Kisshu grinned down at her.

Ichigo peeked at the screen to make sure the movie really was over. "Why did I let you pick..." She groaned, sitting up.

"If you don't like scary movies, why didn't you say something?" Kish asked as she got up to put the movie back in its case.

"Because it was your first movie," Ichigo said, "I figured I might as well let decide what it was." Her phone started to make noise from the coffee table.

Ichigo scrambled to answer it. "Hello?...Aoyama-kun!" Kisshu rolled his eyes with his face turned away so she couldn't see. He leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees, and put his chin in his palm. Ichigo glanced at him, "Hold on a sec." She darted around the couch and up the stairs to her room. Kish sighed and decided to take the empty popcorn bowl and their water glasses to the sink. Her mother was cleaning dishes.

"Oh, um, is it okay if I..." He didn't know if it was polite to put dishes in the sink while other people were cleaning or not. He knew they did at the cafe, but this was a home.

"Just set them right next to the sink, Kisshu," Sakura said cheerfully. "So, how did you and Ichigo meet? I know it couldn't have been school since she transferred to the all girls academy."

"I, um..." Kisshu thought of a good and believable explanation besides diving off of a building to kiss her. "I go to Tasuku's school."

"That must be fun," Sakura said, "he's such a nice boy. Are you two good friends?"

"Kind of," Kish said. He and Tasuku did seem to get along pretty well.

They heard a soft crash from upstairs and both looked towards the ceiling. "Would you go check on Ichigo for me?" Sakura asked, "I'm a bit worried with her boyfriend traveling so much."

"Yeah, sure," Kisshu made his way upstairs and found her curled up on her bed in the corner, her knees pulled to her chest with her arms wrapped around them and her face buried. Her cell phone and jingly bell choker were on the floor near her desk.

"Did Goody Two-Shoes do something?" He asked, walking to the bed.

"I want my friends," Ichigo said shakily.

"Okay..." He was surprised she didn't reprimand him for name calling. He looked at her cell phone on the floor and walked over to pick it up. The screen was cracked but it was still usable. He fumbled with it for a minute, trying to figure out how to use it, but managed to find Berry's number.

After it rang for a few seconds, "Ichigo, what's up?" he heard on the other end.

"It's actually Kisshu," he said.

"Oh...what's going on?" She sounded worried.

"I don't know," Kish said, looking back at Ichigo, who hadn't moved. "Ichigo was on the phone with Masaya and now her cell phone has a cracked screen and all she said was that she wanted her friends."

"That can't be good..." Berry mumbled, "alright, I'll handle it from here."

"Okay," Kish said, "thanks, bye." They hung up and he set the phone down on the desk. He looked back at Ichigo, "Koneko-chan, is there anything I can do?" He wasn't good with people when they were upset and especially didn't know how to handle Ichigo in this state.

"No," She sniffled. "Just go, please." He watched her for a moment, worried. He knew she was crying; he could hear it in her voice. Without another word, he made his way to the door and went back down to the kitchen to let her mother know that something had happened between her and Aoyama, that he was "heading home," and that her friends were going to be there soon. Sakura thanked him, although she was clearly worried, and he left, teleporting himself to the base Pai and Tart were staying at once he had gone out the front door. He told himself she'd be safe in the time it took for the other Mews to get there.

* * *

The next day at the cafe, Kish noticed Ichigo was very upset still and that her nails had been painted to look like strawberries. He walked up to Tasuku who was leaning on the front counter, waiting for Berry to come back from the kitchen with their next delivery. "Do you know what happened last night?" He asked.

Tasuku looked at him, "Masaya told Ichigo he wanted a break for while he's in Italy. Told her they should try seeing other people. He said it was because of him traveling and insisted she would get lonely with him gone so much."

"Oh," Kisshu looked back at Ichigo. It made sense now with how she reacted to the phone call and how glum she was. Despite this, he couldn't help the rising joy knowing that Ichigo was now free and he might actually have a chance if he played his cards right.

He walked over to where she was standing by the kitchen and grabbed her hand, "cute, Koneko-chan, did you do this?"

"No," she said monotonously, "Zakuro did."

"I like it, it fits you," he said, "so-"

"Please don't, Kish," she interrupted him, "I'm not in the mood today." He stared at her for a moment before Ryou walked up.

"Would you two stop flirting and get back to work?" He said. Ichigo silently walked off and Kisshu lingered for a second before doing as Ryou had said.

Ichigo was a mess all day. Ryou had told her to "suck it up during work" when he found Berry trying to console her on the kitchen floor as she ate strawberry chocolate swirl ice cream right out of the carton, to which she threw the spoon at his head. He had dodged it, but just barely. Keiichiro told him to leave her alone for now and let her grieve in peace. Kish constantly made jokes, poked fun at her, and made perverted comments in an attempt to get her riled up but it wasn't working like it usually did. She would just shoot him a glare before sulking away.

At the end of the day when they closed up the cafe and Ichigo was sweeping, Minto walked up and grabbed the broom from her. Ichigo looked at her in shock but then Keiichiro walked out with a strawberry cheesecake and set it on a table.

"What's this for?" Ichigo asked.

"To cheer you up, doofus," Minto said, "you've been sulking all day."

Retasu smiled sweetly, "we're all trying to help you feel better, Ichigo-san."

"Purin wants Ichigo-oneechan to be happy again, na no da!" Purin said, bouncing on her toes.

"Yeah, I haven't even called you old or fat all day!" Tart piped up.

Ichigo's face started to scrunch up and tears slid down her cheeks, "you guys..." she started wiping rapidly at them with the back of her hands, "I'm sorry, I-I don't mean to be like this, it's just..."

Berry hugged her around the shoulders from behind, "we know it's hard, but we're all here for you. Why do you think we dropped everything to spend last night with you?"

"Purin had to leave her siblings alone with Tar-Tar, na no da," Purin said.

"Thank you!" Ichigo was still crying, but she also smiled for the first time that day which made Kish grin. Everyone dug into the cheesecake and drank tea.

Pai and Retasu shared one of the two-seated tables as they ate, "Pai-san, may I ask you something?" She said.

"Of course," he said.

She stared down at her cake, "what was Suika talking about? When he said something was all over your mind."

Pai's eyes snapped up to look at her but his face remained blank. No, he would never be able to confess what that nuisance was talking about, and especially not to her. "I do not know," he said monotonously. Retasu remained quiet, knowing that he was not telling her the truth. She silently wished he would trust her more.

A strange rumble that shook the cafe came from outside and everyone froze, waiting to see if it had just been an Earthquake or something else. When screams were heard outside, the Mews and aliens ran for the door. Mikan floated above the trees in the park not too far away. His hands were held high above his head with his palms facing the sky.

"MEW MEW ZAKURO!"

"MEW MEW PUDDING!"

"MEW MEW LETTUCE!"

"MEW MEW MINT!"

"MEW MEW BERRY!"

"MEW MEW STRAWBERRY!"

"METAMORPHO-SIS!"

The girls transformed as they ran with the aliens following behind them. By the time they got to the park, everyone had cleared out of it and thick vines were racing up towards Mikan. Minto flew upwards, aiming her arrow at the tangled vines.

"RIBBON...MINT ECHO!" A glowing blue arrow shot out and hit one, making it recoil back to the ground.

"RIBBON...ZAKURO PURE!" A whip of purple light struck several and the ones that were hit recoiled, but still more shot up.

Mikan set his eyes on a certain Mew and a vine shot in her direction too quick for her to dodge. Purin let out a scream as it wrapped tightly around her as it lifted her into the sky and held her close to the orange haired alien. Tart flew at them, his palms out in front of him, struggling for control over the plants. Purin struggled against the grip of the vine, biting and ripping at it, but it wouldn't let go.

"Retasu!" Ichigo shouted, looking back at her. She gave a nod, understanding what needed to be done and Ichigo started sprinting as fast as her cat DNA would let her, heading right for the vines.

"Ichigo, what are you thinking?!" Kisshu called after her, following in flight.

Ichigo ignored him and kept running as fast as she could, which was faster than Kisshu could fly. She jumped up from vine to vine until she was above the tree line. "Now!" She yelled to Retasu who readied her weapons.

"RIBBON...LETTUCE RUSH!" She shot water at Ichigo who caught it with her Strawberry Bell and spun around, sending it right at Mikan.

"Ack!" He was blown backwards by the stream of water.

"Down!" Taruto yelled, commanding the vines to shrink back down and return to the dirt below. Purin landed safely on the ground, as did Ichigo. Kisshu smiled with relief that she hadn't gotten herself hurt. Tart rushed to Purin, "are you okay?"

Before she could answer, Mikan appeared next to them and he was angry. He grabbed Purin's arm and yanked her into a choke hold. "Move and I break her neck!" He shouted. Everyone watched in horror, not knowing what to do. Purin could hardly breathe in his tight grip. She tried to wriggle her way out but couldn't so she opened wide and bit down on his arm. "Ow!" He shouted, letting her go. In rage, his raised his hand and slapped her. Hard. She let out a scream as she fell to ground and Mikan disappeared.

"Purin!" Tart exclaimed, kneeling to see if she was okay.

With a red hand print on her face, she still smiled up at him, "I'm all right, Tar-Tar, na no d a!"

Tart looked angry now, "I can't believe he hit you like that! I'm so gonna beat his ass next time I see him!"

"Watch your mouth," Kisshu said, "and I told you to be careful. They know what we care about." Tart helped Purin up and the girls powered down.

"Why would they only send one?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah, that's weird for them," Berry said.

"I think they're testing to see how strong we are as a team," Kish said.

"He is anticipating no coordination or cooperation," Pai said.

"But the war was ended in peace," Minto said, "why would he expect that?"

"Because he is foolish," Pai said.

* * *

Tart stood leaning against the doorway to the living room with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans, watching Purin as she swept the entryway of house. He couldn't take his eyes off of the red hand print on her cheek. He pushed off the doorway and walked up to her, taking the broom and resting it against the wall. She looked up at him curiously.

"Purin, you got attacked you today because-" He started but she interrupted him.

"Purin knows why, na no da," Purin said.

"Y-you do?" Tart was a bit surprised. Kish teased him about his crush it all the time, but never in front of Purin, so how could she know?

She beamed up at him, "Because Purin is Tar-Tar's friend, na no da, that's why she got attacked today."

He stared at her for a moment, glad she didn't know the real reason. He didn't want to lose her as a friend because of it. Kish had told him that that could happen if you told someone you liked how you felt, but they didn't feel the same. He smiled back at her, "Yeah, but I won't let it happen again."

She threw herself at him, squeezing his waist, "Purin is glad, na no da!"

* * *

**Not a whole lot happened in this chapter, I know, but I needed to get Ichigo and Masaya's relationship at least sort of over. Now the real KishIchigo-ness can begin! I have some cute scenes coming up for all three main couples so I'm kind of excited to see what you all think of it :) And please review!  
**


	6. Ice Cream Beach

**The sixth chapter :) Please enjoy!**

* * *

Walking backwards was by no means Retasu's strong point. Add in a full tub of dirty silverware in soapy water and you have a disaster. "Eee!" She yelped as she tripped on her own feet and fell backwards. Forks and butter knifes clattered to the floor and a pair of strong arms saved her from hitting the floor by hooking themselves under her shoulders. She blinked up at Pai, kneeling with her in his arms. They were both now soaked. Pai stood them both up and Retasu jumped back, her face red.

"T-thank you, Pai-san," she said, "I'm so sorry, I should have been watching where I was...going." She froze up as he started unbuttoning his work shirt.

"It's fine, Retasu-san," Pai said. He shrugged the wet shirt off his shoulders and draped it over the back of a chair. He looked up at her and gave her a slightly quizzical look, "are you feeling alright? Your face is red." He put a hand on her forehead.

"Um, I-I..." she forced her eyes to stay firmly on her shoes, trying to not stare at him. "I'm fine!"

"No fever but you aught to change before you catch a chill," Pai said.

"Okay!" Retasu squeaked and ran off to the dressing rooms.

Pai stared off in the direction she had ran in. "Strange," he mumbled to himself. She was usually much calmer than that. He knelt and gathered all of the spilled silverware into the bucket and took it the kitchen. He found Kish cleaning the dishes at the sink. "Where is Ichigo-san?" He asked, "I assumed you would not let her out of your sight after she was taken."

"Yeah, well, as much as it sucks, she won't let me in the changing room with her," Kish said. He stacked a plate on the drying rack and looked over his shoulder at Pai. He gave him a very confused look, "where the hell is your shirt?"

Pai set the bucket down next to the sink, "it got wet."

"How?" Kish asked, still confused.

"Retasu tripped and spilled this cleaning bucket," Pai answered. "Strange, though, that she became quite red afterwards."

"After she tripped or after you took your shirt off?" Kish asked.

"My shirt," Pai answered. He turned around and leaned against the counter. "I told her to change before she caught a chill."

"Pfftt!" Kish started laughing hard. "She wasn't getting sick, Pai! She's just a shy girl who thinks you're some hot stuff."

"Hot stuff?" Pai questioned, giving him an unamused look.

"Yeah, you know," Kish subsided his laughter, "attractive, sexy, whatever you science types call it."

"I know what it means, Kisshu," Pai said.

"Okay, but now the question is; do you think _she's_ hot?" Kish asked. Pai answered by glaring at him. Kish grinned, "I'll take that as a 'yes.' Come on, already, just admit you like her. It'll feel better."

"Does it feel better to you that Ichigo is being targeted?" Pai asked rhetorically.

Kish's face fell and he glared down at the dishes he was cleaning, "you don't have to be an ass about it, okay? I was just teasing. Besides, it's not like Suika hasn't already found out. I know that's what he was talking about when he took Ichigo to that abandoned building. I just think you should tell her before something happens."

Pai looked away, staring into empty space. He supposed Kisshu was right, but how was he supposed to go about telling her something like that? He wasn't good with emotions, especially fluttery ones directed towards a woman.

* * *

The next day, Ryou told the girls the cafe would be closed to give them a break and took everyone to the beach. The girls put on their swimsuits in the changing rooms and the boys had put theirs on before leaving.

Zakuro's was a black and purple striped bikini, Purin's was a yellow one-piece with a short frilly skirt and an orange bow on each hip and she had a clear plastic floaty tube that had a monkey and banana pattern, Retasu's was green with a mid-thigh length skirt and a cute dolphin on the chest, Minto's was a blue one-piece with a white feather pattern, Berry's was a white tankini with a raspberry and strawberry pattern, and Ichigo's was a cotton candy pink bikini with a strawberry pattern and a very short ruffly skirt on the bottom piece.

Kisshu kept pulling at his dark green swim trunks until they hung low on him the same way his old pants did. When he looked up and saw Ichigo walking over, his eyes widened. She looked good in a bikini and the skirt made it quite adorable. She put down a hot pink towel next to his black one and eyed him, confused.

"What?" She asked.

"You look _hot_," he said, grinning and looking her up and now.

She scowled at him, "do you always have to make things so awkward?" He kept staring so she sat and curled herself up, hugging her knees to her chest. He shot her a disappointed look and plopped down on his butt.

Berry and Tasuku jogged up to join them, putting down a pale pink towel next to Ichigo's hot pink one and a brown one next to the pale pink one. Berry dropped her beach bag onto her towel. "Let's swim!" She beamed at Ichigo and Kish.

"Sure!" Ichigo jumped up.

Tasuku peered around her at Kish, "you coming?"

"Uh..." he looked out at the ocean and furrowed his brow. "No."

Ichigo raised and eyebrow at him. He was usually much more energetic and playful, it surprised her that he'd say no to going swimming. She turned around and squatted facing him, "are you okay?"

"Fine," he said, not taking his eyes off of the water.

She studied his face and then something occurred to her, "you do know how to swim, right?" He turned his head away from her, still keeping his eyes on the vast blue. He looked completely surprised, however, when she grabbed his wrist in her hands and started pulling him towards the ocean, giggling a little. "Don't worry, it's easy! I'll teach you and we won't go out that far."

She stopped when the water was at his knees and told him to stay there while she went out a bit further, where she would demonstrate. Berry and Tasuku went further along the shoreline to play with a beach ball with Purin and Tart.

"When you're swimming, you need to push out in front of you, like this," Ichigo held her hands together in front of her and then moved them out and away. "Keep doing that over and over, and kick your legs. Try it!"

Kish put one hand on his hip and scratched the back of his head with the other, "I don't know..." He started to take a step back, feeling uncomfortable in the water, but Ichigo bent forward and grabbed his wrist. He looked back at her to see her actually smiling up at him for once.

"Don't chicken out," she said, "if you can fight a war, you can swim in the ocean."

He sighed, finding himself unable to say 'no' to her smile, "alright." He waded out to where she was.

Ichigo held up a forefinger, "one rule: you can not use flight to help you. It has to be all you. Oh, and don't forget to hold your breath."

He looked down at the water around his thighs with unease and then up Ichigo's smile. Just the fact that it was aimed at him gave him more confidence. She stepped in front of him and grabbed his hands. "Lower into the water," she instructed. He kept his gold eyes firmly on her pink ones and did as she told him to until his chin touched the surface. "Good, now I'm gonna start walking out further but I won't let go of your hands, okay?" He nodded and she started to walk backwards in the water. Once the water was at her chest, she told him to start kicking his legs. Her smile brightened, "good! You're doing really good! Kick faster, though." Kish started to smile, too, thinking he was getting the hang of it. She turned them, starting to walk backwards again, but made sure the water stayed at her chest. There was a bright flash and she glanced over at the sand for a moment but looked immediately back down at Kish. She started easing her hands out of his.

"Move your arms like I showed you," she told him.

He tried, "gah!" He faltered and lurched himself forward, grabbing onto her arms.

She grabbed his elbows to stable them, "relax, it's not like I'd let you drown."

He let out a breath and nodded. "Am I still doing good?"

"Yeah!" She gave him another encouraging smile. He smiled back and tried again. Ichigo let go of his elbows and he very slowly released his grip on her arms to start moving them as she had told him to. She moved backwards again so he could swim forwards.

"Good, now just keep moving towards me," Ichigo said.

"Pai, look! I'm swimming like a human!" Kish shouted over to Pai, who was several feet away, looking at seashells with Retasu. He looked up and gave a small smile of amusement.

"That's great," he said back. It reminded him of when Kish was little and insisted on showing him everything new he found or learned to do.

A couple walking along the shoreline gave Kish and Ichigo a funny look.

"Eh hehe," Ichigo forced a laugh, "he's just weird," she tried explaining to them. They refocused their attention on each other. Ichigo leaned a little as she walked backwards to whisper to Kish, "you can't say stuff like that. People will find it suspicious."

"Right, sorry," Kish mumbled, not entirely paying attention to what she had said. He was far more focused on his swimming now. She moved to walk next to him.

Tasuku and Berry wadded over to them and she put a hand on Ichigo's shoulder, whispering in her ear. Ichigo's face lit up, "yeah, that'd be so fun!" She said. She tapped Kish on the shoulder, "stand up."

"What are we doing now?" Kish asked as he stabled himself on his feet and smiled. He was starting to find the whole playing in the water thing a bit easier and more exciting.

Berry moved to stand behind Tasuku and Ichigo walked around Kish. Tasuku grinned at him and he stood there, looking confused but happy.

"Chicken fight!" Both girls exclaimed, grabbing the boys' shoulders and leaping up onto them.

Kish almost stumbled backwards but caught himself, grabbing Ichigo's thighs so she wouldn't fall off, "A _what _fight?!" Ichigo and Berry leaned forward and clasped their hands together, laughing.

Tasuku grinned up at them, "a chicken fight. It's when two people sit on the shoulders of two other people and see who can knock the other into the water first." He had his hands on Berry's thighs, like Kish did on Ichigo's. He guessed that was the standard way of playing the game and must have been why she wasn't asking him to move them. There was another flash and Kish took a quick glance at the shoreline to see where it was coming from. Keiichiro was standing there in red swim trunks and flip flops, taking pictures of everyone. Berry and Ichigo struggled against each other and twisted their arms around, causing them to fall into the water at the same time. The four laughed at the fact that no one had won.

Purin ran out of the water with her yellow beach ball, Tart following close behind. "Let's get some ice cream from the boardwalk, na no da!" She exclaimed.

"What about the others?" Tart asked. They stopped once they were on the sand.

"What about them, na no da?" Purin asked, "it's okay if it's just me and you." She walked over to her hooded monkey towel and put her ball down. She picked up the towel, shook it off, and wrapped it around herself, throwing the hood over her wet hair.

"I'm gonna make sure Pai knows where we're going so he doesn't get mad," Tart said. "Hey, Pai!" He yelled over to his big brother. Pai looked up at him. "We're gonna go get ice cream!"

"Don't wander too far!" Pai called back.

"Okay!" Tart grinned at Purin, "Let's go get ice cream!" Purin grinned back and they headed up to the boardwalk. Among the little surf shops and random food stands was a small ice cream shop. It had a bar and four stools with the ice cream in the back through a swinging door and a blue and white striped overhang. They climbed up onto two stools next to each other.

"Hey, kids, what'll it be today?" Asked the elderly man behind the bar with a friendly smile.

Purin kicked her legs and she sat bundled in her monkey towel, looking up at the menu on the back wall with a bright smile. "Cookies and cream, please, na no da!"

Tart read through all the different flavors curiously, wondering what each might taste like. He looked at Purin, "recommendations?"

"Mmm..." Purin thought about what he might like and then grinned, "Sherbet!"

"That one, please!" Tart said to the man.

"Alright," the man said, "cups or waffle cones?"

"Waffle cones, na no da!" Purin cheered.

"You got it, kid!" The man turned and went to the back to get their order.

"Oh, look," they heard a sarcastic voice behind them. They turned in their seats to see four girls around their own age standing behind them. They were all looking at Purin and Tart guessed they were friends of hers. "It's the _freak_," the one at the front of the small group said.

"What- hey!" Tart exclaimed, "that's not nice. Take it back!"

"It's okay, Tar-Tar," Purin said with a soft smile, "I don't mind, na no da."

"Who asked you?" The leader girl snapped at him. "Who are you anyway? Her little freak boyfriend?"

"Tar-Tar, this is Keiko-chan, na no da," Purin said.

"Tar-Tar?" Keiko looked him up and down and shrugged, "not bad, I guess."

"Only Purin can call me that!" Tart said. "My name is Taruto."

Keiko muffled a laugh and the other three mimicked her. "Oh, I'm sorry. That is kind of a stupid nickname."

"You should be nicer to her 'cause if it wasn't for her, this whole-" He stopped when Purin grabbed his elbow and shook her head at him.

"What?" Keiko said, "you know, she has this freaky obsession with yellow. It's almost like she's trying to be like that monkey Mew Mew. What's her name again?"

"Mew Pudding, I think," one of the other girls said.

"Just because you _almost_ have the same name doesn't mean you'll ever be as cool as her," Keiko said. She waved and said in an almost mocking tone, "see you when school starts."

"Goodbye, na no da," Purin said, looking down at the ground with a sad smile. The four walked away down the boardwalk.

"No one knows?" Tart asked, surprised.

Purin looked up at him, "of course not, na no da."

"Why? You're heroes and they know it!" Tart said.

"It's safer for us that way, na no da," Purin said, grinning at him again. He started at her, wondering how she could always stay so happy when her life wasn't exactly something to smile about. The man came out from the back and handed them their ice creams.

"Thank you!" They both said and started eating. Tart paid, insisting since he had his own money from the cafe. Paying for things made him feel more grown up.

"Eh..." he flinched at the sudden cold on his nose and looked to Purin. "I don't have a napkin."

"Hold still," Purin said, grinning yet again. Faster than he could register, she had leaned over and licked it right off. His eyes widened and he jumped back in surprise. The old man behind the counter laughed at them. Tart blushed and focused his narrow eyes on his bare feet. Purin went back to happily licking away at her ice cream, her legs kicking, and one hand holding her towel closed around her. Tart looked up at her from the corners of his eyes. He smirked, thinking she looked cute. _Flash_. They both looked behind them to see Keiichiro standing there, smiling, with the camera in his hands.

"Cute shot," he said, "the others were wondering if you two wanted to play some volleyball."

"Okay, na no da!" Purin said. They hopped off the stools, said goodbye to the ice cream man, and followed Keiichiro back to their spot on the beach. When they got there, though, the sky darkened and the wind picked up.

"That's weird, it's not supposed to rain today," Ryou said as he walked up to Keiichiro.

"You're right, it wasn't," he said, "I guess the forecast changed."

Masha popped out of Ryou's shirt pocket, "alien! Alien!"

"Oh, yeah," he looked over his shoulder at Ichigo, "he's fixed now, by the way." Ichigo shot him a glare before looking to the sky.

"I don't see- _Retasu_!" Ichigo screamed her friends name as a circle of fire shot up around her.

Retasu stopped dead in her tracks, staring at the high flames dancing in a circle around her. She didn't have her pendent and the flames were too high and too hot for her friends to throw it over to her. Everyone else that had been on the beach started screaming and running for a safer place to be. Kehki appeared high above Retasu, controlling the flames.

"Pai-san!" She yelled, trying to see him through the flames. He had said he'd be back in just a moment and wanted to put some seashells in her bag so he could take them back to his base.

Pai was standing by Retasu's towel. He and Kehki glared at each other, "You know what happens when water meets heat?...Evaporation!" Kehki lifted his hands and the flames rose higher.

Pai calculated his options. If he used his fans, Retasu would get burned, bad. If he tried to fight Kehki one-on-one, Retasu could suffer smoke inhalation. His eyes widened when he saw her collapse behind the flames, holding a hand over her nose and mouth, coughing.

"MEW MEW ZAKURO!"

"MEW MEW MINT!"

"MEW MEW PUDDING!"

"MEW MEW BERRY!"

"MEW MEW STRAWBERRY!"

"METAMORPHO-SIS!"

He looked to the girls, now transformed, wondering what they thought they could do to help. Minto dug into Retasu's beach bag and found her pendent. She flew up and got as close to flame as she could but stopped and shielded her face with her arms. "It's too hot!" She shouted down to Ichigo.

"Drop it!" Ichigo yelled back. Minto tossed the pendent into the fire circle and it landed right next to Retasu's hand. She grabbed it but she was already too overheated and groggy from the heat to have enough strength to use it.

Pai tensed when he felt a hand on his shoulder but realized it was only Kish. "I warned you," he said, "and now you have to do something."

"RIBBON...ZAKURO PURE!" Zakuro's light whip wrapped itself around Kehki's wrist and he was yanked a few feet closer to the ground, making the flames falter.

"Hold him there!" Pai said to Zakuro. He flew up above the flames and summoned his fans, making them large. "Fu-Rei-Sen!" At the huge gust of wind, the flames extinguished, blowing away from Retasu. He teleported himself next to her and picker her up, running for the water. Keeping her in his arms, he lowered her below the surface, making sure her face stayed above for air. He felt her shudder at the sudden temperature difference and noticed a thin layer of black ash was now covering her as well as a minor burn on her upper left shoulder. He hoped what he was doing was helping. She coughed harshly several times. The rest of the mews were trying to fight off Kehki's shots of fire with their own weapons. Pai leaned close to Retasu's ear.

"The ocean will heal you," he whispered, although it was more of a prayer.

"RIBBON...LOVEBERRY CHECK!" He heard in the background, and then "RIBBON...PUDDING RING INFERNO!" But he poured all of his attention and focus on the girl in his arms.

Suddenly, Retasu sucked in a deep breath and her eyes shot open, "MEW MEW LETTUCE! METAMORPHO-SIS!" A green light surrounded her and Pai slipped his arms out from underneath her. When the light faded, Mew Lettuce stood before him, ready to fight.

"Thank you," she said quietly, giving a soft smile that almost seemed...loving? She looked to Kehki and her face hardened as she summoned her weapon and ran for him.

"RIBBON...LETTUCE RUSH!" A burst of water shot at him, drenching him.

His flame went out and he hovered in the air, shaking his hands, trying to relight the fire, "damn it..." He looked down at the mews, glaring at Retasu. "This isn't over." He disappeared.

Pai smiled at Retasu from the water. He felt relieved.

"What was that all about?" Berry asked. The girls had all powered down.

"Why would they go after Retasu-oneechan?" Purin asked.

"I don't know," Retasu said, her voice sounding slightly scared.

Pai looked at the whole group and spotted Kish looking back at him with a serious look as he stood next to Ichigo. "_Tell her_," he mouthed. Pai looked down at the water and waded towards the shore. He knew Kish was right. It was time for her to know.

* * *

"What a day," Ichigo sighed as she sat in her beanbag chair, fiddling with her hair ribbons. Kish was laying on her bed with his hands clasped behind his head, staring up at the ceiling.

"Yeah," Kish agreed. He looked at her and smirked, "hey, guess what?"

"What?" She asked, looking up at him.

His smirk grew, "we had fun together."

She raised an eyebrow at him, "yeah, so?"

"Just fun. No fighting or arguing with each other," he said, "we spent the day together and enjoyed it."

Ichigo looked back down at the ribbons in her hands, "I guess it is a first. Except Retasu getting attacked wasn't so fun."

"True, but she'll be fine," Kish said. "Pai's got her back." He looked back at the ceiling and closed his eyes.

"Can I ask you something?" Ichigo said.

"Anything," he said. He assumed she would ask what Pai's feelings were towards Retasu, but what she did ask surprised him a little.

"How are you, Tart, and Pai related?"

He looked over at her again, "that's your question?"

She nodded, "when you first came back, you said you were family. How so?"

He looked at the ceiling again, "Pai and Tart are biological brothers. I'm the adopted middle."

She remained silent for a moment before slowly asking another question, "do you remember your parents? Like, why are you adopted?"

Kish smirked and huffed out a short laugh, "no, I've been stuck with the peanut gallery for as long as I can remember. I don't know what happened to my parents."

"What about Pai and Tart's parents? What are they like?" She asked.

Kish shrugged, "never knew them either. Pai is my brother, but he's also the closest thing to a dad I've ever known. He might remember their parents, I don't know. He's never really talked about it."

Ichigo gazed at him. "_How sad_," she thought.

Kish rolled over onto his stomach, his eyes closed, "your bed really is comfy, Koneko-chan," he pressed his face into the pillow, "and it smells like you. Can I take a nap here?"

"Um...sure, I guess," Ichigo said, watching him. She sat there for several minutes until she thought he had fallen asleep. He did seem rather tired. She got up and walked over to her desk, looking at all the pictures she had taped on the wall. She felt like it was time to update them. She reached over and tore down the one of her Masaya.

"Koneko-chan?" She jumped a little at Kish's half-asleep voice. "Thanks for teaching me how to swim," he mumbled.

"No problem," Ichigo said, crumpling the picture and dropping it into her trash bin against the wall. "It was fun." She sat down on her chair and opened her laptop, pressing the 'on' button of the printer with her toe under the desk. She grabbed Masha off her cell phone and used the USB in his tail to hook him up to her computer and get some pictures off of him.

* * *

**Ta-da! I thought a beach day would be a fun idea. Please review! I really do appreciate it :)**


	7. Scared Strawberry

**All about KishIchigo in this chapter :) I feel like I haven't been putting enough of them and they're supposed to be the main couple in this fic. Anyway, please enjoy!**

* * *

_Boom._

Ichigo awoke with a start at the loud rumble of thunder. A shiver ran through her as she lay under her comforter. Rain pounded on her window and lightening flashed bright, illuminating the whole room. She looked to see if Kish had woken up, too. He was still sound asleep, his head tilted back on the beanbag chair and his chest rising and falling evenly. She didn't know why, but thunderstorms had always scared her. Something about the loud noise and electric light made her uneasy. Another flash and she froze, thinking she saw a figure outside her window. Although, it might have just been the way the branches of the tree outside were being shaped by the strong wind. She could hear it whistling through the leaves and rattling the window occasionally.

_**Boom.**_

She jumped, startled by the incredibly loud roll of thunder, and wondered how Kish could still be sleeping through this. She glanced between him and the window. It made her feel a little better that she wasn't alone, at least. It felt safer having him there. Another flash of lightening. The figure was still there, but it looked leafier now and more broken up. She bit her lip and let out a shaky sigh. Her heart was pounding a little and she knew she'd never get back to sleep. Her cat DNA made her feel a need to curl up with something warm. Once again she glance between the window and Kish. It would only be because she was scared, right? She slowly slid one foot to the floor and then slid her body off of the bed and onto her hands and knees.

_Boom._

She had started crawling towards him but dropped closer to the floor when another loud roll of thunder sounded. She regained herself and continued until she was right next to Kish. She sat with her legs tucked underneath her and looked up at him. A flash of lightening illuminated the room once more and she saw his mouth was open just slightly in a thin slit.

"Kish?" She whispered. She didn't want to wake him up, but she was scared of the commotion the sky was causing outside. She lifted herself up to get closer to his ear. "Kish?" She whispered again.

_**Boom.**_

"Eep!" She squeaked and dropped back on her butt at the sudden sound. Her heart was pounding. She did not like this storm at all and her only source of comfort was a heavily sleeping alien. She wondered for a moment how her alarm clock could wake him up but not this storm. She took a quick glance at the window before deciding that she didn't care anymore. She wanted something that would let her sleep through the storm.

She carefully started lifting the blanket but paused when he sucked in a quick breath and quietly mumbled, "Tart, you're too old for this...just a bad dream...go back to bed..." Realizing he was still asleep, she crawled under the blanket and onto his lap, laying herself across his chest. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and held onto the front of his shirt with fists.

_Boom._

She shifted the blanket over them so it came up to her nose.

Kish stirred a little and lifted his head slightly, his eyes remaining closed, "Tart, y- Ichigo?" He said groggily, not fully conscious, "What're you doing? I don't mind, it's just..." he sleepily rubbed one of his eyes and yawned.

"I'm scared," Ichigo said quietly.

"Oh, okay," Kish draped one arm around her shoulders, the other rested on her hip, and he sighed. "This is nice...I like this." He fell quiet and drifted back to sleep. Ichigo felt herself relax. Feeling safe, she managed to fall asleep.

"Ichigo," her ear twitched as a finger gently trailed along it. "You need to wake up now, Koneko-chan."

"Hm?" She slowly made her way to consciousness and her eyelids fluttered open, feeling heavy.

Kish chuckled lightly, "I thought this had been a dream," he said. Ichigo shook her head and rubbed her eyes.

"I don't like thunderstorms," she mumbled.

"That's okay," he brushed a lock of pink hair behind her ear and stroked her cheek. She pulled back a little to look at his face. He looked so happy to have her there, on his lap, with an arm around her.

"No perverted remarks?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He shook his head slowly, "I don't wanna ruin this. Not yet." He looked into her eyes, still smiling, as if she were something amazing.

"How long have you been awake?" Ichigo asked. Kish shrugged and wrapped his other arm around her, pulling her close to his chest.

"I've always wanted to wake up to this," he said. Ichigo was still not entirely awake from her dead sleep and let him hold her there for a few minutes. He was comfy and smelled like gingerbread.

"Why did you wake me up?" She asked, her eyes starting to slide closed again.

"You forgot to set your alarm last night and it's around the time it goes off," Kish said.

Ichigo inhaled sharply and sat up fast, clumsily trying to get to her feet. "We have to get ready for work!" She said and crawled off his lap onto the floor. She grabbed the desk to support herself as she stood up and held her head. "I slept like a rock," she moaned.

"I must be nice to sleep on, then," Kish said with a smirk, watching her. She crossed the room to her dresser and pulled out a worn pair of jeans that had rips over the knees and a black and pink striped t-shirt. She tossed it on her bed and started doing her makeup.

"You should go get ready at your um, base thing," she said to Kish.

He stood up and stretched, "yeah, probably. Will you be okay?"

"It only takes you a few minutes to change your clothes," she said, "I think I'll survive."

He smirked, "Be right back then."

Now that he was gone, Ichigo changed quickly, brushed her hair, and put it up in pigtails with black ribbons. She was in the bathroom brushing her teeth when Kish returned in front of her desk. He noticed some of the pictures had been replaced and there were a few new ones. He leaned close to look at them. The one of Ichigo and Aoyama was gone. The group shot of everyone at the cafe had been changed to a newer one that included himself, Tart, Pai, and no Aoyama. There was also the picture Keiichiro took of her teaching him to swim, them playing Chicken Fight with Berry and Tasuku, Tart and Purin at an ice cream stand on the boardwalk. Ichigo and Tart yelling at each other. Kish and Tasuku grinning with an arm around the other's shoulders. Retasu and Pai reading together at a table.

"So, do you have any idea why Kehki would go after Retasu?" Ichigo asked as she walked in. "I mean, I get them going after Purin with her being friends with Tart and all. But I don't get Retasu."

"Pai has a crush on her," Kish said absentmindedly, still looking at the pictures.

"What!?" Ichigo squeaked. He straightened and looked over at her. She was grinning at him.

"Yeah, he likes her but he won't admit it," Kish said.

Ichigo giggled, "that's so cute because she totally has a crush on him, too." She grabbed her cellphone from her bedside table and shoved it in her pocket. She walked up to Kish and stared up at him.

He stared back and then smirked, "if you want a kiss, all you have to do is ask."

Ichigo rolled her eyes, "I just didn't realized how tall you had gotten until now."

Kish raised an eyebrow, "people grow."

"I know, but we were like, the same height last year," Ichigo said, "and now I only come up to your chin."

Kish smirked again, "do you like taller guys?" Although he was a bit surprised that she had even paid enough to attention to him last year to remember how tall he had been.

He expected a snappy answer or a glare but instead Ichigo simply shrugged and said, "I guess," and turned to look at her clock. "We need to head to work," she said. And then she had an idea. "Can you teleport us?"

"Sure," Kish said, "but only if I get to hold you!"

Ichigo shot him a disapproving look and put hands on her hips, "I think you did enough of that last night."

"Hey, you're the one who crawled on me," Kish said. He held a hand out, "so why is now any different?"

"Because I was scared and the only reason you're here is to make sure I don't get killed," Ichigo said bluntly. She sighed and turned towards the door. "Never mind, I'll just walk like I usually do."

Kish quickly crossed the room to follow her as she opened the door, "why are you so stubborn?"

Ichigo turned on her heel and put a hand to his chest, stopping him, "you can't follow me, my parents are downstairs."

Kish narrowed his eyes and grabbed her arm. "I like being close to you, okay? I know you don't particularly care for me, but what you did last night is kind of messing with my head."

Ichigo closed the door. "How is that messing with your head?" She asked, her eyes also narrowed. "I was scared. You were there. That's it."

"But...if you were willing to come to me because you were scared, there has to be _something_ there, right?" He asked. His golden eyes bore into her pink ones. They were filled with need, desire, and a hint of hope. Or maybe it was desperation.

Ichigo yanked her arm out of his grip, "I...no! I still love Aoyama-kun."

She gasped when he pinned her against her door by grabbing her wrists and holding them next to her head. He glared down at her. "_Why_? He left you. I traveled across a _galaxy_ just to protect you. Why does it always have to be him? Why can't you ever choose me!?" He crushed his lips against hers and pressed his body against her, pinning her in place.

"Mm! Mm mmm!" Ichigo struggled against him but she couldn't move. She knew the only thing that he wouldn't expect in this situation. She kissed back, throwing her arms around his neck. She didn't get the shocked reaction she was looking for. Instead, Kisshu stumbled back, snaking his arms around her waist and held her so tight against himself that she almost couldn't breath. The kiss was rough and passionate. Their lips moved together fluidly. Kish buried a hand in her hair and that was the moment she broke the kiss, shoving him away. They were both panting for air.

"We can never. Be together," Ichigo huffed between breaths.

"Why?!" Kisshu cried, "if that's so true, then why did you just kiss me?"

"I was trying to surprise you so you'd let me go!" Ichigo answered.

"But you kept kissing me even when I didn't!" Kish said.

"Get it through your head!" Ichigo exclaimed, "if we even tried to be in a relationship, we would have so many problems it wouldn't last a week!"

"You don't know that!" Kish shot back. "For all you know, we could have something amazing that lasts the rest of our lives."

"And what if it doesn't?" Ichigo asked, quieter now. "We both get our hearts broken. We both get hurt. We can never look at each other the same again."

Kish let out a short bitter laugh, "you already broke my heart, Ichigo. Every day that you chose Aoyama over me added another crack until it just shattered completely. I guess I was stupid to think that I might have a chance with you or that that kiss meant anything." He hung his head and his bangs covered his eyes, "I need to be away from you for a while. Tell Ryou I won't be coming in today." With a ripple of the air he was gone.

Ichigo stared with wide eyes at the spot Kisshu had been standing. Her eyes ached with threats of tears that wouldn't shed. She hadn't realized she'd hurt him that badly. She jumped and let out a small gasp when her cellphone started to ring. She pulled it out of her pocket and answered it. "Hello?"

"Where are you? You're an hour late." It was Ryou.

"Oh, damn it..." Ichigo wiped her free hand over her face and sighed. "Sorry, I'll be there as soon as I can. Oh, and Kish said to tell you he won't be working today."

* * *

Kisshu was sitting in a big sakura tree in a park. It was the same one he had tried using to poison Tokyo with. It was bare of leaves but he didn't care. He just needed a quiet spot to think. He had one foot up on the branch while the other dangled below him and an arm rested on his knee. He let his head hit the trunk and closed his eyes. Why did he always screw up with her? Why was it that he could never seem to get anything right when it came to Ichigo? She was the only thing he wanted out of life but he could never have her. He curled his hands into fists, irritated with himself and how the day was turning out.

"You might," a voice said, "someday."

Kish's eyes snapped open to see Suika floating in the air a few feet in front of him. He glared and growled, "what are you doing here?"

Suika held up his hands, "relax, okay? I'm just here to talk."

"What the hell would you want to talk about?" Kish asked.

Suika's lips curled into a smirk, "Ichigo. You see, I don't just read minds and emotions. I can tell you what you're feeling in the pit of your heart. Those things you don't even let yourself know."

"What does this have to do with Ichigo?" Kish asked, holding his glare.

"There's a spark," Suika said, "nothing big. Just a spark. But it's a spark for you."

Kish's eyes widened slightly but then continued glaring. "How do I know you're telling the truth?" He asked.

Suika shrugged and his expression turned mischievous, "Let's ask our little kitty-cat, shall we?" He disappeared.

Kish teleported himself to the cafe's kitchen. Keiichiro looked up, a bit startled by the sudden guest. "Oh, Kisshu-san. Ichigo-san said you wouldn't be in-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, where is she?" Kish interrupted, talking fast, "Suika's after her."

A look of concern took over Keiichiro's face, "Ryou just sent her to look for you."

"Damn it!" Kish swore and teleported again to her bedroom. She wasn't there. He went to the park. Not there. The beach, not there. The Red Data museum, not there. The aquarium, not there. The bus station, not there. With every place he looked he grew more and more worried. He teleported to her school and started running through the building. He had no idea where he was going in the place but he had to find her if she was there. He ran down a hall, yelling, "Ichigo!" The building seemed empty and his voice echoed through the hallways.

He was about to try a different location when he spotted an open door. Inside, he could see Ichigo tied to a chair with duct tape over her mouth. She was wearing her school uniform, her hair down and no shoes or socks. She was staring straight ahead at the blackboard with fear in her eyes and she was breathing slowly, deliberately, like it was the only she wanted to focus on. She glanced at him with her eyes.

"Mm mm!" She mumbled through the tape. Her eyes were pleading but Kish couldn't tell what with. For him to save her or was she trying to warn him that it was a trap? Either way, he had to protect her. He walked into the room, not taking his eyes off of her. She started mumbling again, louder, and looking even more scared. The door slammed shut behind Kish and he heard the quiet _click_ of the lock. Despite this, he continued towards her until he dropped the ground and everything went black.

* * *

**Hehe, I like ending with cliffhangers. Even if I don't do it that much, I still like the suspense of them. As always, please review!**


	8. Fighting Quiche

**And now we get to read what happened after Kish got knocked out :) enjoy!**

* * *

Kish moaned, feeling a headache developing at the back of his head. His vision was blurred and doubled but then focused as he became fully conscious. He was tied to a chair next to Ichigo, who was still looking terrified. So much so now that her ears and tail had popped out. Suika was standing at the front of the classroom in front of the blackboard. He had a piece of pink chalk and was drawing randomly on the board. On the teacher's desk was Ichigo's mew pendent. When he heard Kish, he put down the chalk and slowly turned to face them with a malicious smirk.

"Well, well, well," Suika said, "you really shouldn't sleep through class."

Kish sneered at him, "maybe if you'd teach something interesting that wouldn't happen."

Suika clasped his hands behind his back and walked over to stand a foot or so in front of Kish and Ichigo. "Students should learn to be more respectful." He knelt in front of Ichigo and glanced at Kish. "I wonder what would happen if..." He raised his hand and put it on Ichigo's thigh. She visibly shuddered.

"Get your _f**king_ hands off of her!" Kish screamed and thrashed in the chair, trying to break of the ropes that bound him. Ichigo tried to kick but her feet were tied tightly to the legs were tied tightly to the legs of the chair.

Suika snickered, "you're like a gun and she's the trigger! This is fun." He gripped her hips with both hands and stood on his knees. "Do you know how jealous Kish gets when he sees you with other guys?" His hand shot up and grabbed her jaw, roughly forcing her head to turn and look at Kish. He was glaring at Suika with all the hate and disgust he could muster up.

"Let her go," Kish growled, "kill me if you want, just let her go."

"Killing you wouldn't be any fun," Suika said, "not with what you took from me."

"The hell are you talking about?!" Kish shouted, "I didn't take anything from you!"

"Yes you did!" Suika shouted back. "It was supposed to be _my_ group that got the Earth mission! _Not_ yours!"

"That isn't my fault!" Kish argued. "I didn't make that decision. Deep Blue did!"

"You still stole it from me. You stole everything from me," Suika said, quieter now, "so now I'll take something from you." Ichigo was shaking witht of fear. Suika stood up, "Kehki, move him."

Kehki appeared behind Kish, who hadn't realized he was even in the room, and picked up the chair he sat in by the back. He walked to the front of the room and set Kish on the teacher's desk, being careful to not knock Ichigo's Mew Pendent off. Kish noticed Mikan still at the back of the room as he tried to struggle out of the bonds. He couldn't seem to break them. A sound started playing from underneath the desk and Suika looked over with a raised eyebrow.

"What is that?" He asked. Kish recognized it as Ichigo's cellphone ring tone but didn't voice the fact. Suika walked around the desk and shuffled through Ichigo's cafe uniform. A small pink device fell out of the apron pocket. He picked it up and stood. "What is this?" He asked. He glanced between Kish and Ichigo, walking around again to stand between them. Kish caught a glance at the caller ID. Ryou. Suika fiddled with it, trying to turn it off, but accidentally answered the call.

"_Ichigo?_" They heard.

"Ryou!" Kish shouted, "Send the other-" Suika threw it at Kish's face and it hit him right in the mouth before falling to the floor. He could already feel a bruise forming. The back popped off on the linoleum flooring and the battery slipped out. Kish glared as Suika marched over and stomped on the device, crushing it.

"Clever," Suika said, "very _clever_." He walked around Ichigo, standing behind her. She flinched when he started petting one of her cat ears. "Calling your little friends won't help anything. Not this time." He summoned his chain and tossed it around her neck, pulling on it and making her choke. She whimpered, unable to breathe. Kish clawed at the rope that bound his hands behind the back of the chair. If Suika was distracted long enough, he could break it. Suika leaned close to Ichigo's ear but kept his eyes on Kisshu, "let's put on a show for him, shall we?"

He straightened and took a step to the side, standing next to her now. He held his chain to the side and whipped it, hitting Ichigo in the stomach. If it hadn't of been for her restraints, she would've doubled over, but instead she could only scream through duct tape in pain and let her head hang.

"Leave her alone!" Kish yelled, ripping even harder at the rope.

"Kehki, Mikan," Suika said, "go see what their little friends are up to. They might be close by now."

"Gladly," Kehki said with a twisted smile. The two disappeared.

Suika stepped in front of Ichigo and knelt. He reached and started pulling her skirt up her thighs. Kish was seething as he tried to break the rope. Ichigo whimpered, unable to do anything. Suika grabbed her inner right thigh, digging a nail into her Mew Mark.

"She isn't really that strong, you know," Suika said quietly. "This is her only real power. The animal that lives inside her." He looked up at her and grabbed her face in one hand, squeezing her cheeks. "She's nothing. Just as pathetic as the human you lost her to."

"You don't know anything about her," Kish growled.

"Oh?" Suika stood and spun to face him. "Don't I? I know she's terrified because she can't transform and her only rescue is also tied up. I know she's heartbroken because a little human boy left her. I know she's afraid of using you for rebound."

Kish paused, "rebound?"

"Yes, rebound. She does care about you," Suika said, "maybe not in the way you would like just yet, but she _might_ just come around."

Kish glanced between Suika and Ichigo and then let his head hang a little, "you're lying. She'll never love me."

"Why would I lie, Kish?" Suika asked, feigning hurt. "She kissed you this morning, didn't she? And no, it wasn't all feisty tricks." Kish looked up at Suika. "Somewhere, something inside her meant it."

"Really?" Kish asked. Suika nodded, thinking he was reeling him into an emotional trap. "Guess I'll have to ask about it later," a rope dropped and Kish lunged at him, sai in hand. Suika's eyes shot wide and he jumped out of the way. He summoned his chain and got to his feet, prepared to fight. He flew at Kish, who held up his sai in defense, and struck his forehead. A small gash appeared and blood trickled down. He glanced at Ichigo, then Suika, then the Mew Pendent, and back to Suika.

Having read his mind, Suika and Kish both lunged for the small golden charm at the same time. They fought, shoving each other, until Suika grabbed it and tossed it as hard as he could out an open window.

"No calls during class!" He growled. He punched Kish in the face and tackled him to the ground. Ichigo started thrashing in the chair, trying to wriggle her way free. It wasn't working. Kish rammed a knee into Suika's side and they tumbled over with Kish now on top. He summoned his sai again, ready to strike, but Suika punched him in the solar plexus and grabbed one of the Dragon Swords. Kish tried to recover as fast as he could, forcing lungs to accept the air he was breathing in.

Suika flew at Ichigo and struck at her as she threw herself to the side. He slashed her cheek and then took a swing at her knee, making another cut. He had his arm raised, ready for another strike, when Kish tackled him from behind. He straddled Suika's hips and grabbed the collar of his shirt, repeatedly punching him in the face.

"I...Said...Don't...Touch...Ichigo!" Kish yelled through gritted teeth as he threw punches. Suika grabbed his hand before he could swing at him again and threw him off. He immediately teleported away, knowing he wouldn't have a chance in fighting Kish while disoriented and having a swelling black eye.

Kish sat there, panting, and glared at the spot where Suika had been. He got up and set Ichigo's chair on it's feet. He stood in front of her and peeled the duct tape off as gently as he could. He knelt to untie her legs and stood again, reaching around her to untie her hands. As soon as the rope hit the floor, Ichigo jumped at him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Oof!" Kish stumbled back and had to grab onto the teacher's desk for support. Ichigo started to sob into his chest and two slid down the front of the desk. Kish put one arm around her, the other feeling too sore from punching to move, and leaned his head back against the desk. He was still a little out of breath and Ichigo was clinging to him, crying from how scared she had been. She shook with every breath.

The door slid open and Kish rolled his head to the side to see Pai standing there with the other Mews behind him. "About time..."

* * *

"Ow! That stings!" Kish winced and jerked his head back as Retasu tried to dab at the gash on his forehead with disinfectant.

"You need to hold still," she pleaded with him.

"Isn't there something else you can use?" Kish complained.

"No, not really," Retasu again tried to apply the stuff with a cotton ball but he dodged her. He and Ichigo were sitting on Ichigo's bed as Retasu cleaned them up. Pai was there, too, leaning against the window frame with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Kisshu, let Retasu-san use the disinfectant," Pai said in an authoritative voice.

"Fine," Kish grumbled and held still so Retasu could do her job. He winced every time the cotton ball touched his forehead. When Retasu was done, she put a band aid over the gash and stepped back to look at him.

"All better," she said. He only bruises and a busted lower lip left. She moved on to Ichigo, who had a cut on her cheek and knee and a bruised stomach and left shoulder. Kish couldn't looked at her. It was too painful to see. He closed his eyes with a sigh and looked away. It was his fault, he told himself, because he had left her alone.

"It's not your fault," Ichigo said. Her head was tilted to the side so Retasu could disinfect the cut on her cheek.

"What?" Kish opened his eyes but didn't look at her.

"I said it's not your fault," Ichigo said, "you shouldn't blame yourself."

"Can you read minds, too, now?" Kish asked, almost sarcastically.

"No," Ichigo said, "but I know you."

"I shouldn't have left you alone like that," Kish said. He shook his head, "you can't try to tell me it's not my fault." They both fell quiet.

Retasu sighed as she cleaned the cut on Ichigo's knee, "I'm just glad you're both okay."

"As am I," Pai said, "Suika is a very dangerous person."

"It took us a while to figure out that Kehki and Mikan were only sent to attack us as a distraction," Retasu said. "I was so worried we'd get there too late."

"If Kish ranked highest in hand-to-hand fighting, then fighting him should've been no problem, right?" Ichigo asked.

"No," Kish said, "I might have ranked highest, but Suika was a very close second. It was almost a tie between us, actually. That's really the only reason he even made it into the military aside from his mind reading thing."

"It's so weird to think that you're in the military," Ichigo said. Retasu stood up, done with Ichigo's knee, and went stand by Pai.

Kish raised an eyebrow at her, "why?"

"Because you're like, what? Sixteen?" She said.

"Fifteen," Kish said, "and yeah, so? You're fourteen and saved the world a year ago."

"That's true," Ichigo said with a small smile.

"Well, we'd better head out now," Retasu said, "I'd like to get to the library." She looked up at Pai, "that reminds me, the book you borrowed is due back today."

"I shall go with you then," Pai said. "I will see you both later," he dipped his head at Ichigo and Kish and they both waved a goodbye.

"See you tomorrow!" Retasu chirped happily as she and Pai left the room to let themselves out the front door.

Silence settled over Kish and Ichigo. Before she knew it, though, he had thrown himself at her, wrapping his arms around her waist, and knocked them both backwards on the bed. He nuzzled his face in her stomach and held her tightly.

"K-Kisshu, what are you-"

"Do me a favor, Koneko-chan," he interrupted.

"Hm?" Ichigo asked, confused.

"Stop getting kidnapped," He said, "no more going off on your own, even if Ryou tells you to. I can't stand the thought of Suika putting his hands on you again..."

"Kish..." Ichigo pushed tried pushing on his shoulders to make him get off but he wouldn't budge. Instead, he held on tighter.

"Please, Ichigo," Kish said quietly, "I need this right now..." She stopped pushing on him and let him hold her.

* * *

Pai and Retasu had gotten back from the library and were at Retasu's house. She had a clean load of laundry in her room and was putting it away. Pai stood near the door of Retasu's bedroom, watching carefully as she roughly folded her clothes and shoved them into her dresser. She kept sniffling once in a while and kept fiddling her glasses. He was there by Ryou's orders since she had recently been attacked during their trip to the beach.

"Are you alright?" He asked. She nodded quickly without looking at him. He didn't buy it. "Tell me the truth, please."

Retasu inhaled deeply and let out a shaky sigh, putting her palms against the edge of the dresser to lean on it. She kept her head hung low. "I don't know what to do," her voice shook slightly.

"About what?" Pai asked.

"I don't know what to do to protect myself!" She exclaimed. She pushed off the dresser and crossed the room to her bedside table. She swiped her Mew pendent off of it and glared down at it in her hand, "I used to feel strong, like I could protect the whole world if I needed to. And I was! I did. But now...even when I transform, I feel like...being targeted like that, without reason, I just...I don't know what to do if they come after me again!" She squeezed her eyes shut and raised her hand, ready to throw her pendent across the room. Ready, until a strong hand grabbed her wrist. She blinked and looked up at Pai, who was now standing right in front of her. He gently lowered her hand and took her pendent, pressing it to the Mew mark on her chest with his palm.

"You are not weak, Retasu-san," he said, "and there is reason. You are also not alone. We are here to protect you." A few tears slid down Retasu's cheeks and she slid her arms around his waist in a hug. He lightly put his arms around her, a bit surprised at her actions.

"Thank you," she said quietly. After a short pause, she pulled away and smiled up at him with a few tears still in her eyes, "you're like an anchor, you know?" Her smile softened, "keeping me from drifting too far out in a sea of bad thoughts." Pai stared down at her, a little amazed that he was able to calm her so easily. He felt a strange urge pulling at him. To kiss her, he realized. He refrained, thinking it wasn't the best time. He wasn't ready for her to know yet, but knew she would soon. He just hoped he would be able to tell her before Suika or his friends did.

* * *

**A bit of PaiRetasu at the end :) Ichigo nearly getting killed like that kind of freaked her out. And there will be much more KishIchigo coming up! As soon as I write the chapters, haha.**


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